Rules Guy

Rules
A golf ball in a divot on the sixteenth fairway during the Second Round of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship at Yas Links Golf Course on January 21, 2022 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Rules Guy: What do you do when it’s impossible to recreate your original lie?

What do you do when you have to mark your ball in the fairway but are unable to recreate your original lie? Rules Guy has the answer.
Rules
A mid-adult Caucasian golf coach guiding a young Caucasian female on the tee box, surrounded by lush greenery. The young golfer is attentive, learning the techniques with focus and enthusiasm as they enjoy the serene environment.

Rules Guy: If you hit toward the wrong fairway, can you re-tee without penalty?

What do you do if your group mistakenly hits tee shots toward the wrong fairway? Can you re-tee without penalty? Rules Guy has the answer.
Rules
Viktor Hovland of Norway climbs into a bunker where his ball was plugged under the lip for his thir shot on the 18th hole during the second round of the 2022 U.S.Open Championship at The Country Club on June 17, 2022 in Brookline, Massachusetts. (Photo by David Cannon/Getty Images)

Rules Guy: Taking my stance made my ball move in a bunker. What now?

What do you do if your ball plugs in a bunker and taking your stance causes it to move? Rules Guy has the answer.
Rules
Collin Morikawa (USA) plays a shot from the first cut of rough at the 17th hole during the second round of the Memorial Tournament presented by Workday 2025 on May 30, 2025 at Muirfield Village Golf Club in Dublin, Ohio.

Rules Guy: Playing preferred lies, can I place my ball in first cut instead of fairway?

When playing preferred lies, is it legal to place your ball in the first cut when you’ve landed in the fairway? Rules Guy has the answer.
Rules
golfer holding unmarked golf ball

Rules Guy: Is it legal to play a ball with no identifying markings?

Is it permissible to play a ball that doesn’t have a visible brand name or any identifying markings? Rules Guy has the answer.
Rules
Davis Chatfield of United States watches his ball embedded in the bunker during the final round of the The Panama Championship 2025 at Club de Golf de Panama on February 02, 2025 in Panama, Ciudad de Panama. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images)

Rules Guy: Can you remove a ball from a plugged lie in a bunker to identify it?

If your ball ends up in a plugged lie in the sand, can you remove it to identify it? Rules Guy has the answer.
Rules
a golfer lines up a putt on the green

The year’s most-read rules question involved where to stand when someone’s putting

The most-read rules question of 2025 involved a relatively mundane topic: Is it legal to stand directly behind someone when they’re putting?
Lifestyle
frustrated golfer cursing on green

Is it okay to curse on the golf course? The Etiquetteist has choice words

Cursing on the golf course can be funny and cathartic. It can also be wildly inappropriate. Here’s how to know the difference.
Rules
golf ball sitting on divot in fairway

Should you get free relief from absurd lies? The Etiquetteist weighs in

The Rules of Golf are very clear about bad lies in the fairway. But golf etiquette follows a different set of guidelines.
Lifestyle
back tees on hole at bethpage black

Should bad golfers be banned from playing back tees? The Etiquetteist weighs in

A recent Reddit debate raised the question of whether golf courses have the right to dictate which tees golfers play.
Lifestyle
gambling golf

I lost a bet to a sandbagger. Did I have to pay? The Etiquetteist weighs in

Some golfers cheat. But a wager is a wager. And even if the match was unfair from the start, you still have to live up to your word.
Lifestyle
a golfer tees off on the golf course

Pro says high-handicappers could play faster doing this. Is it a good idea?

One PGA Tour player said high-handicappers could speed up play by being more prepared for poor shots while on tee boxes, but is he right?
Lifestyle
two golfers shaking hands on green

Can A.I. help golfers with golf etiquette? We found out

Decades after the rise of Iron Byron, robots don’t just play golf anymore. They’ve got into talking about golf, too.
Lifestyle
lose-up of a golf ball with the flag of South Korea realistically rendered in 3D.

8 ways South Korean golf course etiquette differs from the U.S.

In the golf-obsessed nation of South Korea, golf etiquette is unlike what you’ll experience in the U.S. Here are eight major differences.
Travel
A view of Machrihanish in Scotland.

Why this Top 100 course is more than the ‘greatest’ 1st hole in the world

The opening hole at Machrihanish is a fitting introduction to a course that unfolds as a case study in classic Scottish links.
Travel
shoreacres golf course

Why the shortest World Top 100 course is long on fun

Shoreacres tips out at just over 6,300 yards, but the story of this great Chicago layout is more than just a tale of the tape.
Travel
Courtesy Kawana Resort

This cliff-hanging course is long haul for U.S. golfers — but worth the effort

Unlike many of the finest courses in golf-rich Japan, Kawana is part of a resort and accessible to the public.
Travel
a view of oakmont's church pew bunker

The 5 toughest courses on GOLF’s latest World Top 100 ranking

Not all courses are created equal. Some, like the toughest tests on GOLF’s all-new World Top 100, are especially stout in their demands.
Travel
National Golf Links of America in Southampton, N.Y.

7 surprising facts from GOLF’s first World Top 100 ranking

Forty years later, GOLF’s inaugural ranking of the world’s best courses reveals what has – and hasn’t – changed.
Travel
The par-4 15th hole at The Lido.
Insiders Only

Blind spots in our World Top 100 ranking? Our audience called out some

GOLF’s ranking to Top 100 Courses in the World is a biennial tradition that triggers its own ritual: public feedback.
Travel
A view of Carnoustie in Scotland.

Old to New: Sorting our Top 100 Courses list by year built

Take in the extensive history of our Top 100 Courses in the World list by browsing the course names sorted from oldest to newest.

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