Golfers are responsible for knowing the Rules of Golf, the Decisions on the Rules of Golf and any local rules or conditions of the competition.   Saying you didn’t know the rule will not excuse you from penalty in most if not all situations.  There are few important rules to know that we will cover here.

Time of Starting

You have to be on the tee ready to play at the time that your group is scheduled to start or, if the tee is backed up, at the time when it becomes possible to start.  Ready to play means you have a club and a ball.  So, if your tee time is 8:10 AM, you have to be there at 8:10:00 AM.  There means on the tee, not on the putting green 20 yards away.  You should always strive to be on the tee at least 5 minutes before your tee time so that the starter can give you the scorecard you are to keep and tell you any important information you need to know.
If you are late to the tee, but within 5 minutes, you will be penalized two strokes.  If you are over 5 minutes late, you will be disqualified.

Scorecards

When you start your round, you will be given the scorecard for another player in your group.  Your responsibility is to keep track of his or her score and record it on the card.  You should check with the player to make sure you agree on the score after every hole.  Write it down immediately so that there is no mistake.

At the end of the round, you should sign the card and give it to the other player.  The player who kept your card will do the same thing.  You should ALWAYS check the card to make sure that all the 18 hole scores on the card are correct.  If they are not, discuss it with your marker and get it corrected.  Make sure that you sign the card and make sure the marker signed it.  It is your responsibility to make sure that the card has scores recorded for each hole played, your handicap is correct and the two signatures.   It is the responsibility of the Committee to add up the scores and apply the handicap to determine the net score.

Each scorecard we provide has a perforated strip at the top of the card labeled “Marker’s Notes”.  You should record your own scores on this strip.  At the end of the round, tear this strip off.  When the marker gives you your card, lay the strip on top and you can easily compare the scores you kept with the ones he or she kept.  This is the best way to check your card.  Having one player read the scores to the other one can be error prone.

If there is an error on the card, discuss it with your marker and come to a conclusion before you leave the scoring area.  If you are marker and you feel uncomfortable with the score the player says he made, bring it up before he leaves the scoring area.

Your card is not considered returned until you leave the scoring area.  You can make corrections until that time.  It is always good to wait for the NCGA official to check the card and total it before you leave.

If you return a wrong score that is too low, you will be disqualified.  If you return one that is too high, you will have to live with that score.

What to do if you are unsure of what to do

The Rules of Golf realize that you might not always be sure of what to do in some situations.  Therefore, in stroke play, Rule 3-3 is provided which allows you to play 2 balls and ask the Committee for a ruling later.  There is a very specific procedure to follow in applying Rule 3-3.
1) Before you hit the shot, you must tell a fellow competitor that you are playing two balls
2) You must state which ball you want to count
3) You should ALWAYS hole out both balls
4) Before you return your scorecard, you must notify the Committee that you played two balls and the facts of the situation.  If you fail to do so, you will be disqualified.

Let’s take an example.  Your ball comes to rest in an area that you think should have been marked as Ground Under Repair, but isn’t.  You should tell one of the other players in your group that you are going to play two balls under Rule 3-3 because you think you are in Ground Under Repair (GUR).  You would then determine the edge of the area where the GUR ends.  From there determine your nearest point of relief and drop a ball within one club-length of that no nearer the hole.  You then should play both the balls and complete the hole with both of them.  At the end of your round, you should tell the people in scoring that you played two balls under Rule 3-3.  They will ask you about it and might have to take you out to look at the area.  They will make a ruling and tell you which score to count.  You have to do this even if you made the same score with both balls.  If you see an official on the course, you can also tell them and them might resolve it before the round is over and let you know the ruling.

Player’s Code of Conduct

Players should be neatly dressed at all times at the course.  Denim is not permitted.  Players must wear golf attire when playing.
Swearing and club-throwing will result in a warning on the first offense and possible disqualification for repeated offenses as specified in Rule 33-7.