For many it’s been a long time since they’ve managed a round of golf since the world went into a global lockdown. A month or so ago many golf clubs tentatively started opening up again but with strict restrictions and rules what is the experience like if you now get the opportunity to get a round in?
At the end of July a few colleagues of mine suggested we venture out to our regular golf course and get a round in. For all of us this was going to be a novel experience as none had played a round since January. First step was booking and reservations, there are no ‘walk-ins’ allowed and of note the maximum number of players for each group was four. We were warned before about the ‘new normal’ rules and regulations which are quite draconian. Before arrival we all had to wear face masks which we’re technically not allowed to remove until we left the course, more on that later.
On arrival at bag drop our names and booking details were checked and cross referenced after which we were allowed to approach an official looking desk manned by the course staff also wearing masks and gloves. We all scanned a QR code to check-in with the club, incidentally this process does record your personal details and forms part of the contact tracing process and will undoubtedly vary from course to course and country to country. The next desk was for hand sanitising and a temperature check, we all rigorously cleaned our hands and took an acceptable temperature reading, we were adorned with a brightly coloured sticker to confirm that we had successfully passed screening.
We were lucky enough to get allocated caddies and carts for our round, actually we were then told they were currently mandatory. The staff retained their face masks throughout the round and interestingly a clear transparent sheet had been installed in the cart to separate players from their allocated caddy/driver. It only took a few holes before one of my colleagues declared he couldn’t breathe properly whilst playing and abandoned his mask, nothing was said by any staff.
Despite the rules and restrictions, we all agreed that it was fabulous to be back on the course, after a few shaky holes we all got back into the swing of it and we have committed to playing again at least once or twice a month. Check out the rules and regulations for your local course before playing. From our experience the ‘new normal’ was unobtrusive and we thoroughly enjoyed the day out. During these unprecedented times it's important to support your local golf course so get out there and get playing.
Hopefully you can get playing on a course soon but if you are still stuck at home and don’t have any training aids or equipment you can still order online. One of the best value online stores is Top Golf Goodies who have a huge range of putting and swing aids to help your golf game. Most of their equipment is priced at well under $30 and best of all shipping is free. Their stock is constantly changing as they find new innovative golf accessories and training aids bringing them direct to your door.