Golf When I wrote my spring column, COVID19 had just been declared a pandemic and months of quarantine began in Canada with many courses forced to close. As I sat down to pen the summer column you are now reading, golf courses throughout the country had reopened. With the average course offering more than 150 acres of open space, golf fanatics welcomed the ability to play again and, with it, the much-needed boost to our mental and physical health after months of self-isolation. As businesses started to reopen – including golf courses − they did so with new rules and protocols. The most important new rule is to practise “social distancing.”That term came into widespread use this spring and means keeping a safe space (at least six feet) between you and others and avoiding large gatherings. Golf certainly has enough rules to remember! I’ll forgive you if you don’t know what Rule 13-2 in the Official Rules of Golf states (dew-wiping is a two-stroke penalty), and how and when to apply it. But it’s crucial that you remember the new rules and protocols created in response to the pandemic and practise them from the moment you pull into the parking lot at your local club until you leave. It’s all about managing risk: yours, your playing partners’ and the course staff ’s. Any activity carries some risk so, if you are going to golf, it’s best to minimize that risk. You must change the habits, routines and rituals that are ingrained on your minds from years of playing golf in a particular way. You need to change many of these before you tee off, such as: only touch your own equipment, leave pins in on the greens, smooth sand in bunkers with your feet. And, no scorecards. Record your score on an app on your phone. Or, here’s a revolutionary idea: play without keeping score – enjoy the game and the company without worrying about whether you made double-bogey or par. The pandemic has brought enough anxieties without adding another one. Get used to a little dirt on your ball, playing from bunkers that are not raked, and elbow bumping with your group members – rather than that traditional high-five or fist bump after you sink that long birdie putt. If the range is open, you will also have to adhere to social distancing guidelines on this practice area. Expect your round to possibly take longer – despite the increased gaps between tee times; with only one golfer per cart and as people adjust to some of the other rules, they will most likely add a few minutes to each hole. Be patient with the groups in front of you and behind – there will be no waving groups through for slow play violations at this time – just as the pandemic taught us – be patient, be kind and be present. It’s a learning experience for everyone. Be happy that you are out in nature and getting a chance once again to enjoy this great game and share the experience with some friends and family – even if it’s from a distance. Mark your ball so that you do not mistakenly pick up your playing partner’s and potentially contaminate it. For me, music is the elixir of life. Next to golf, listening to music is one of my biggest passions. What better way to help you remember the new golf rules in the age of COVID-19, and the regulations and protocols that are here for the foreseeable future, than by putting them to music. Here’s a soundtrack to help you recall these rules of golf and protocols in the COVID-19 “new normal.” Golf From a Distance 1. Wash Your Hands Instead of the lead-in to the first chorus: “Hands, touchin’ hands,” Diamond changed some of the lyrics during COVID-19 to “Hands ... washing hands ... don’t touch me ... I won’t touch you.”The protocol is to scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. You can pick any song and hum the chorus if you don’t like this Diamond classic; most choruses are at least the required length. Don’t stand, don’t stand/ Don’t stand so close to me. The Police, “Don’t Stand So Close to Me” (1980) Sweet Caroline (whoa-oh-oh)/ Good times never seemed so good (so good, so good, so good)/ I’ve been inclined (whoa-oh-oh)/ To believe they never would. Neil Diamond, “Sweet Caroline” (1969) From a distance we are instruments/Marching in a common band/Playing songs of hope/Playing songs of peace/They are the songs of every man. Julie Gold “From a Distance” (1985) 2. Social distancing Like the lyrics in the chorus to this top-selling single from the British new wave/rock trio’s Grammy-winning third release (Zenyatta Mondatta), golf in the age of COVID-19 is now an exercise in learning to keep your distance. Maintain six feet between you and the rest of your group at all times. Maybe it’s not such a bad thing – you don’t have to listen to that playing partner who talks incessantly – starting every sentence with “Did I tell you about that time…” 52 | www.snowbirds.org
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