The game of golf has always been steeped in tradition, history, written and unwritten rules, along with etiquette. Back in the day, you would find the gentlemen golfer dressed in plus fours, a tie and a wool jacket, even if it was the middle of summer. Country Clubs are the last bastions of golf that are attempting to uphold some of golf’s great traditions and principles. But all things change, some should and some shouldn’t. I wrote a paper over 35 years ago as I was working towards becoming a PGA Member. The topic was what Rules of Golf you would change if you had the authority to do so. I picked fixing spike marks and playing balls from fairway divots. The Rules changes of January 2019 made it so that players can do basically anything on the greens now and not receive a penalty, so the spike mark Rule did get changed. But, we as players still have to accept the rub of the green if our ball ends up in a fairway divot and figure out a way to play it.
I bring all this up because I’m observing some shifts on what is happening on the golf course. I have been at public facilities, so I have seen it all; some players get unnerved when they see a player with his shirt untucked. Try approaching a 350-pound man and telling him that he is going to have to put his shirt back on and try not to bust out laughing when he tells you that he is just “trying to get some sun!” There is a manufacturer now that is called “Untucked”, making shirts that were made not to be tucked in. The Club where I am now requires that shirts be tucked in, I have had a few visitors that try to tell me their shirts can’t be tucked in because they were made to be untucked. Those situations are never fun.
If you are paying attention to what is happening on the PGA Tour, it used to be that spectators were not permitted to bring their cell phones on to the golf course property. Now they are common place except for Augusta National which still does not permit cell phones on the property for patrons. Players used to only have to worry about the shutter noise from the professional photographers, now they have to worry about every spectator on the property.
Speaking of noise, golf is usually a tranquil setting with just the chatter of your foursomes, the songs of the birds and other outdoor noises. Now there are devices to take on the golf course to listen to your favorite playlist while playing. Some courses have the Visage system or other devices that will allow players to watch their favorite sports team in action and not have to miss playing a round of golf. Of course we all know that there are certain demographics of players that despise the use of these electronic gadgets and make no bones about expressing their disdain for such things. They don’t bother me personally, I sell them and if there’s something that I don’t like, I usually just ignore it. I will say that players using these devices should be cognizant of the other players around them and be aware that some players grew up playing with their surroundings being quiet while they are playing and maybe in terms of trying to keep the peace, make it so all the other players on the course don’t have to enjoy their music. There are other things that certain demographics of players or the history of golf look at as being essential parts of the game and golf etiquette. No hats in the clubhouse dining areas, some clubs no hats anywhere, hats on with bills forward, and no rally caps when on certain courses. It seems that hats cause a lot of problems for some players and clubs.
There is a certain part of that lends itself to just being a gentleman, not just a golfer. There is a story about four PGA Tour players filming some sort of commercial in the Grill at Mr. Palmer’s Bay Hill Club. They all had their hats on, probably because they wanted their advertisers to be seen on their hats in the commercial. Mr. Palmer told the director that their hats would have to be removed while in the Grill or they could go outside to finish what they were doing. A lot of “to do” over a hat, but there are Rules about such things, as a visitor to these places, a member or a guest, you should know what the rules are and live by them while there or maybe don’t go there.
I have a friend that I took to play at a grand old course. Anyone who has played there knows that it is a great place, steeped in tradition and a really nice round of golf and a walk through history. It was kind of an inclement day and there were not very many players on the golf course. My buddy is kind of like Pigpen when he plays because he spends quite of bit of time in the woods with the brush and briars pulling at him so his shirt is always untucked. He had to be told several times to tuck his shirt in. It was quite comical, although he did not think so. He finally said, “don’t bring me back here again, there are too many rules!” Who would not want to go back to that club even though they have some Rules that he didn’t agree with.
I have been a Club Professional for 35 seasons and I have seen a lot of changes. No more bags line while you have breakfast waiting your turn. Some clubs don’t even serve breakfast these days. You never see anyone stepping off yardage anymore; I would say that not many new players know that you can get a yardage off of a sprinkler head. The music, the clothing, the things that you see on the golf course now, like I said, upsets some people that are slow to accept change. Whether you are a young player or a seasoned player we should all try to meet in the middle somehow to agree on change. Some Rules are not going change and that should also be accepted. One thing I do know for sure, unless you are pizza or ice cream, you can’t please everyone, you can quote me on that. Although, two seasons ago I found a young man that does not like pizza, so I may have to change the quote.
