TEE IT UP AT SEDGEFIELD A NOTE FROM YOUR DIRECTOR OF GOLF
BUNKER ETIQUETTE
It is hard to believe that 2021 has come and gone. We hope everyone had the opportunity to enjoy the holidays and spend that much-needed time with family and friends. We are so excited for 2022 and have some fun and exciting events planned for you this year.
How many times have you approached a bunker and found the sand not raked or your ball in a footprint? Or how about a bunker rake found at the end of a long line of tracks up the face of the bunker only to have the tracks continue onto the putting green leaving deposits of sand in the form of footprints on the putting green. Many people may have skipped over the first section of the Rule Book. It is the Etiquette section and it is well worth a read.
January wouldn’t be January if we didn’t talk about those New Year’s Resolutions. Let us help you set up a structured plan to accomplish these goals. The Professional Staff is dedicated to helping improve all areas of your game and to help you have the best year of golf you have ever had. The first thing we ask you to do is set up an appointment with a member of the Professional Staff and do an evaluation of your game. We also recommend that you do the same thing with our Fitness Director Sherri Talent and let her perform a golf-specific assessment on your body to understand the golf/fitness relationship. From there she and the Professional Staff at the fitness center will work closely together to set up specific programs designed to help improve the overall performance of your game. We also have a few new player development programs that we will implement this year. Beginning in March, we will be offering a ladies' instructional program designed for all skill levels. I also will be offering an instructional program “Evenings with Eric” that will be dedicated to helping improve your short game. Please be on the lookout for more information on these programs soon. In closing, thank you for your continued support of Sedgefield and the Professional Golf Staff. Our goal is to see you playing more golf, socializing with friends, and utilizing the club more in 2022. Remember, my office door is always open anytime you need to talk!
See you on the course! Eric Ferguson
2021 CAROLINAS PGA ASSISTANT GOLF PROFESSIONAL OF THE YEAR - JOSH WEBB
One of the sentences in the introduction states “The overriding principle is that consideration should be shown to others on the course at all times.” I believe that consideration should also be extended to the course itself. Take a look at the section on “Care of the Course” in the Etiquette section as well. When I see a bunker not raked, I know that it is either someone who has not been taught the etiquette of the game or someone who does not care about others on the course or the course itself. Here are a few simple etiquette points to remember about playing from a bunker and what you need to do afterward. Generally, you should always enter a bunker from the “low side” of the bunker. That is the side furthest from the putting green. This will help the Superintendent to maintain the bunker faces. Locate a bunker rake before you go into a bunker and go ahead and bring it into the bunker with you. There is no penalty if you lay the rake down in the bunker provided you do nothing to test the condition of the bunker. After playing from the bunker, go ahead and use the bunker rake to smooth the sand in the bunker. Try to make it look like no one has disturbed the sand since the maintenance staff groomed the bunkers that morning. Exit the bunker on the “low side” of the bunker; the same way you came into it. After exiting the bunker, go ahead and remove the excess sand from your shoes by lightly tapping the sides of your shoes with a club or gently stomping them on the ground. This will prevent sand from being “tracked” onto the putting green. Place the bunker rake where the course instructs you to; sometime in the bunker and some time out. Just make sure it is on the low side of the bunker or the side away from the putting green.
Please join us in congratulating Josh Webb on being named the 2021 Carolinas PGA Assistant Golf Professional of the Year. Out of the twenty finalist, Josh was selected for this prestigious award. The Assistant Golf Professional of the Year is awarded to an individual who showcases overall excellence as an Assistant Professional. They exude a quality level of service, promotion of the game, image, and overall performance at his/her facility. Josh will be recognized along with the other 2021 Award Winners in February at the Carolinas PGA Awards Dinner.
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