Who told you that??? Maybe you read it on the internet??

I'm curious as to what is considered poor etiquette on the shuffleboard courts?
:boxing2:

And please don’t leave your cigarette butts on the ground.

Raking bunkers during Covid
 

I agree with not raking until this virus is under control. Have you noticed that the water fountains at the starter shacks are still wrapped up? If there wasn't an issue, they'd uncover them.

Just as an FYI this is still in effect as per USGA and is listed under "Temporary Posting under Covid Modifications" in The Villages "Golf The Villages"

Golf The Villages

"BUNKERS AND BUNKER RAKES

It is a normal part of the game to place a responsibility on all players to smooth sand in a bunker from which they have played. Committees have many options as to how to treat bunkers, which are largely dependent on the resources available.

In some cases, a committee may decide their best option is to remove all bunker rakes from the course. When this is done, it is possible for a player’s ball to come to rest in an unmaintained area of sand.
At minimum, it would be advisable to encourage players to try their best to smooth the disturbed area with a foot or a club after playing their ball from a bunker.
If you require cart use or most players at your course use a golf cart, the best approach might be to assign a rake to every golf cart, allowing players to operate as normal.
An additional option includes changing the status of bunkers to be part of the general area. This would give players additional options under multiple relief rules (Rules 16 and 19) and would remove the restrictions normally in effect under Rule 12.
Ground under repair could be used in two different manners. The first being to declare all bunkers to be ground under repair and treat them as part of the general area. This would allow players the option to take free relief outside the bunker under Rule 16.1. The second is to treat disturbed areas only as ground under repair. This would still allow a player free relief from such areas, but would require such relief to be taken elsewhere within the bunker.
As a last resort, a committee may add a preferred lies Local Rule that would allow a player to place the ball elsewhere in a bunker without penalty (such as within one club-length of where the ball came to rest). While that may seem like a good option in that it requires players to play from the bunker, there will be times when no effective relief would be available to a player, such as when a bunker is frequently played from and large areas are unraked. It would be recommended that the other options, such as those listed above, are considered first, noting that using the ground under repair options above ensure a player will get full relief and, when dropping from knee height, balls very rarely plug.
If a committee wishes for bunkers to be maintained, additional options include:
Make golf carts mandatory and supply a bunker rake to every player. The bunker rake handle must be cleansed prior to use on the golf cart. Each player may then use that rake after playing a stroke from a bunker.
Have one person walk with every group who is dedicated to raking bunkers for the group. This individual would be the only person who uses the bunker rake.
Leave all rakes on the course and provide every player with liquid sanitizer or cleansing wipes that would be used to disinfect the rake prior to and after each use, or alternatively, have players sanitize their hands after touching a bunker rake and before touching anything else (such as their golf club, bag or face).
If a committee takes any of the above actions, it is at the discretion of the committee whether scores would be acceptable for handicap purposes."

No more from me on this, deal with it

If you can't rake the traps, stay home. Many people here play for money, so if I lie in a bunker divit that wasn't raked, you are messing with my money. Learn the rules. PERIOD

If you are responsible for making an impression in a bunker, then it becomes your responsibility to rake it so that the bunker again becomes the way it was before your presence. Very simple. I know, responsibility seems to be something that many people have forgotten??

Stanley...sorry. Don't be that lazy guy. Just rake. It's the right thing to do.
Don't get me started with this Covid crap either.

Well said....

No I took New to Golf classes at Sarasota.

Thank you for posting so that others are aware of the rules during these times. I will start raking sometime next summer. Until then, I will follow these guidelines since I do not want that Covid crap!

Due to covid raking bunker is discouraged. Usga confirms this

I took a bunker once. It was days before I got all the sand out of my car. :)

The last I read, TV only encouraged raking, not required it? And like what others have experienced here, I have been in a bunker, took a rake with me, and upon walking back, I discovered there were so many foot prints/divots, that I couldn't keep track of mine?! As for the Ambassadors(former here), we don't rake bunkers, we only realign them the way JohnW showed. Which I found different than up north? Some placed inside, some outside, but most of them emphasized lining the stick with the direction of play, so it did not impede a golf shot(i.e. stopping the roll), which affected their lie? Here they merely want them straight in from the edge.

Not required right now under “ Local Rule”. Your group should allow you to rake and drop, or drop in a smoothed area in bunker.

If raking is optional, why put the rakes out at all? If there is a rake in the bunker, you are expected to use it.

While COVID is still around we are operating under different rules and that has been made clear in this thread. My personal pet peeve is people who don’t fix ball marks on the greens. I always fix mine and usually a couple more if pace of play allows. Fore!

Pet peeves? I have a whole list of them:

People who put one end or the other of their putter into the hole and chew up the edge---if you can bend over and put a tee in the ground to start a hole, you can bend over and carefully remove your ball from the cup at the end of the hole.

People who step within 6 inches of the cup over and over----recipe from creating the "lumpy donut"

People with RA tags who drive on the fringe, or between traps, or park in front of the green. They are usually the last to leave and then spend time just parked there

People who start to leave a green and halfway to the edge have a conversation

People who leave the green, but stay next to it fussing with their bag or clubs or scorecard for a minute. Doesn't seem like much but multiply it by 18 and you see the result

People who clearly hit a ball into a penalty area where even if found there is no chance of hitting it, but spend 3-5 minutes looking. Just take your penalty drop and move on.

People in a foursome with 4 carts, but all move in a group to the first ball, and then the second.......

And I can go on

The best may have been yesterday 4 women playing Egret 8 from the green tees. The hole is 236 yards, uphill, and was into a 2 club wind. Yet none of them teed off until the green was clear! There are only a handful of LPGA touring pros that could reach that green under those circumstances. Needless to say, the best drive among them was less than halfway to the green. Pretty optimistic assessment of their driving distances in my opinion.

If anyone disagrees that these are all unacceptable behaviors, please feel free to attend good golf school.

Tell me again how much fun golf is.

100% Wrong.
Read the notifications.

It's always fun. It's more fun when people obey the rules of etiquette

It's a blast.
Everyone has a different definition of golf.


Just like the different definitions of:
Parking
Virus protection
Cart path speed
Dog poop locations
Developer greed
Politics
Quality art
Home construction quality
etc
etc


:ho:

Ranking is optional. Many people don’t want to pick up a rake because of the virus. Don’t want to touch the rake after other people. We play if in the bunker in an unraked area, we simple replace the ball

The sad part is that even if I provided the data on the almost non-existent surface to human transmission of COVID-19, those people would STILL feel the same way. I gave up talking to the brick walls 6 weeks ago.

Well pro shuffler....
 

I've been playing competitive golf since the late 60's....3 club championships, one
Tricity and numerous USGA events in Maine. Know most of the general rules by heart and the etiquette by heart.

No idea what you're referring to about strategy, but I'd happily place my -2 hndcp against you any day.

It would appear from your post that you misinterpreted my post entirely....

Nope. You would be incorrect...
 

Unlike many I actually checked with the starter and ambassador...raking is not optional since they put the rakes back into the bunkers.

People who don't rake probably don't rake at any time...china virus or not. There is no way to make people rake. Perhaps if they carried the proper disinfectant like I do they could alleviate the worry, but I suspect they'd find another lame excuse not to do what they should.

You and the starter and ambassador are wrong. IT IS OPTIONAL. Call The Villages Golf & Tennis and learn. Raking only needs to be done if the golfer is comfortable doing so.



:ohdear:

Why would such a fantastic competitive golfer with a -2 handicap ever buy a home in The Villages???

Before we bought here we played most of the Championship courses and several of the Executive courses and it was VERY OBVIOUS what we were buying into: less than average design level golf courses with less than average quality of course upkeep and with, at best, average level golfers mingled with lots of people just taking up golf.

We made the decision that this was acceptable and consequently we enjoy our golfing life in The Villages.
We don’t spend our valuable time complaining about the courses, the course conditions and ignorant fellow golfers.

It seems some of us didn’t do their due diligence about the quality of golf here and should probably seriously consider moving to a highly rated and gated community with true country club and/or true championship level golf courses.

:bigbow:

It's a long read so I guess you missed this.

Since you know most of the rules by hart, maybe you need a refresher.

:boom:

Many people never wanted to touch the rake. Now they have an excuse for being disrespectful to others.

It's optional during this pandemic. Many don't want to touch a rake. It's the same reason why you still can't get water out on the course.

Yep, your correct. It is optional right now. It's probably 50/50 right now who rake. There are more important things to worry about. Be glad we can still golf. Geeesshhhhhhh

Do you believe all players maintain a six foot social distance separation? Sure on the fairway but at the tee box and on the green, most of the time no. Yet they don’t want to touch the rake and if they don’t maybe they should wear a mask at the tee box and green until it’s their turn to address the ball. Having played here frequently on championship courses, many golfers have an aversion to raking the sand trap even before covid gave them an excuse. Same goes for not fixing ball marks on the green or filling divots at the tee box or in the fairway.

:bigbow:

Happens every where.
Nothing new.

Always has, always will.
:gc:

Lol...you doubt my motive for moving .....
 

in moving from Maine to the Villages where over a few hundred holes of golf are available?????

Your assessment of the course conditions and average level golfers here is actually quite far from reality. Naturally if you were a member of a private club that might be true, but you also got numerous assessments year to year for upgrades to the course and clubhouse.

I used to play what are now called "championship courses"(they were just 18 hole courses)and here I play almost exclusively exec courses because it's fun and I enjoy the people...most of them. There are a few who view the courses here as substandard as well as the players, but I find them to be the worst offenders when it comes to course etiquette and common sense. They seem to feel they are entitled to do as they wish.

As to who is complaining..not I. Merely pointing out the obvious which anyone with a lick of common sense would understand. Asking folks to do their diligence when it comes to raking bunkers, fixing divots and pitch marks has little of nothing to do as to the quality of the golf course or how many gates the neighborhood has, but to the quality of the people playing. It is not asking too much for them to clean up after themselves. I doubt many people would want someone in their house that didn't raise the toilet seat when appropriate and put it down when finished. Yet there is the assumption that because we don't pay 30k/yr in dues and fees for golf that common consideration should be ignored.

Many folks here assume they're better, or special...they're not....just not fun to spend any time with.