Etiquette

General


• Dinas Powis Golf Club prides itself on being progressive and as such club house attire is generally smart casual with jeans (not ripped) allowed. Golf shoes should not be worn in any carpeted areas of the club house other than the locker rooms.
• No caps or hats should be worn in the clubhouse.
• On the course, though, we do ask that golf clothing is worn, polo shirts should have collars (we do realise that some golf attire does not have collars but these need to be branded as golf wear) and be tucked in to shorts or trousers. Shorts and trousers should be tailored (Cargo shorts are not acceptable) and no tracksuits. Golf shoes should be worn with socks.
• Ladies should wear appropriate golf attire

Consideration for other players


• In the interest of all, players should play without delay.
• No player should play until the players in front are out of range.
• Players searching for a ball should signal the players behind them to pass as soon as it becomes apparent the ball will not easily be found; they should not search for 3 minutes before doing so. They should not continue play until the players following them have passed and are out of range.
• When the play of a hole has been completed, players should immediately leave the putting green.
• When out on the course, Mobile phones should always be on silent and only be answered in emergencies. When you are in the club house, please keep the phone on silent and if you need to take / make a call, please do so outside.
• Whilst the Management Committee and General Committee members are always available for help and advice, we do ask that you do not approach them whilst they are playing golf. They are all volunteers and golf is to be considered their social time. Please hold your questions / points until an appropriate time in the club house.

Behaviour during play


• No one should move, talk or stand directly behind the ball or the hole when a player is addressing the ball or making a stroke.
• When your group are not playing please talk quietly and be aware of other players on nearby holes who may be interrupted by your noise.
• In general play, there is no necessity now to afford “the honour” to a player on the tee or on any shot and in all cases “Play When Ready” should be the rule for speed of play.
In Competitions:
• In stroke play, play “ready golf” in a safe and responsible way.
• In match play, you and your opponent may agree that one of you will play out of turn to save time (Rule 6.4a).

Priority on the course


• Priority is all about speed of play, any game moving quicker than the one in front should be called through, this also applies to a single player as long as they are playing quicker and are being held up.
• Any game playing a whole round is entitled to pass a game playing a shorter round. For Dinas Powis this is particular to players who only wish to play the bottom holes (1-6, 16-18) or those who do not wish to go in the Beauville field (11-14). They shall ensure there is room before continuing play on their shortened round and stand aside if not.
• If a game fails to keep its place on the course and loses more than one clear hole on the players in front, it should allow the game following to pass.
• At all times players further around the course should have priority over those behind them to enhance the speed of play, except on Dinas Powis hole 13 as noted later.
• Any match playing off the white tees has priority on the course, players should be aware of this and stand aside should a match be behind them.

Care of the course


Tees
• The white tees should only be used for competition golf, unless specific authorisation from committee or match committee members. Our tee areas are small, and this is to protect the area from excessive use.
Bunkers
• Before leaving a bunker, a player should carefully fill up and smooth over club marks and footprints made by him/her using the rakes provided.
Greens
• Through the green, a player should ensure that any turf cut or displaced (DIVOTS) are replaced at once and pressed down, and that any damage to the putting green made by the ball (PITCHMARKS) are carefully repaired, damage to the putting green by golf shoe spikes should also be repaired and these repairs may now be done at any time.
• Players should ensure that when laying down the flagstick, no damage is done to the putting green, Do not stand too close to the hole when removing the flag. The flagstick should be properly replaced in the hole before the players leave the putting green. Players should not damage the putting green by leaning on their putters, particularly when removing the ball from the hole.

Golf buggies


• Local notices regulating the movement of golf carts should be strictly observed. Please drive if possible, on paths or in the rough and ensure there is no damage to the fairways. This is especially true when driving up and down the hills at Dinas Powis.
• Buggies must not be driven by persons under the age of 18 years

Practice swings


• In taking practice swings, players should avoid causing damage to the course, particularly the tees, by removing divots.

Safety and specific rules to DPGC


• At the time of writing your golf membership fees do not cover members for 3rd party accident insurance.
• If your ball after being struck from anywhere on the course is likely to land on an adjacent fairway, please shout “Fore” to warn other players.
• On the first hole, do not drive off the white tees if there are players on the 18th tee.
• Please be aware of players on the 5th green when driving off the 4th tee, a strong shout of “Fore” is required.
• When playing a 2nd shot into the 6th green, be aware of the proximity of the 3rd green and 4th tee, ensure you shout “Fore” should your ball be heading towards them.
• When playing a tee shot on the 7th, please be aware of players in front potentially still being on the green putting out, if you are unsure, a shout of “Fore” should warn them and they should signal to let you know they are there. There is a bell to ring as you walk off the tee.
• When playing the 2nd shot on the 10th hole, a member of your group must go forward to the top of the hill as you will be playing blind over the top, this is dangerous for players in front and players playing the 14th hole. However, if players are putting out on the 14th or driving off on the 15th, they should assist speed of play and safety by calling players over 10 when safe and watch their balls in flight.
• When driving off the 11th tee the players need to be aware of the likelihood of players being in the dip playing up to the 13th green as they can be obscured by the foliage in front of the Tee (there is a bell to ring prior to driving off). Players walking to their tee shots from the 13th tee need to be aware of players driving off 11 and should allow them to drive off to speed up play.
• There is a bell on the 16th tee which should be rung prior to driving off to warn people who may be out of sight that you are about to drive off. Any tee shot flying to the right is dangerous to people playing the 3rd, 4th and 6th, please ensure a strong shout of Fore.
• Players who have driven off the 17th tee should allow approach shots to 16 to be played before walking forward to speed up play.
• Beware of crossing the road separating the 7th green and 8th tee and 15th green and 16th tee.
• Be aware of ramblers on the course there are several Rights of Way especially on the lower field.