SHORTEN THE HOLE The teeing ground is the starting place for the hole to be played and it starts with the front and outside edges of the tee markers . The definition of teeing ground tells us that a ball is outside the teeing ground when all of it lies outside of the teeing ground . Therefore , if any part of the ball touches the teeing ground , the ball lies inside the teeing ground . So for those of you who need every yard you can get , tee your ball up with 99 % of the ball in front of the tee markers and 1 % in the teeing ground and your ball is deemed to be inside the teeing ground .

CLEAN UP BEFORE YOU DROP During the course of most rounds you will be put in a position where you must drop a ball . The area in which you are to drop a ball is protected under Rule 13-2 and cannot be improved by means such as moving , bending or breaking anything growing or fixed or creating or eliminating irregularities of surface . However , this prohibition on improvement does not preclude you from removing loose impediments through the green ( see Decision 23-1 / 6 ). Loose impediments are natural and detached objects such as leaves , rocks and branches to name a few . If there are any loose impediments in or around the area that you are about to drop a ball , go ahead and move them before you drop the ball . This is much safer than doing so after you ’ ve dropped a ball and risk moving your ball in play .

Need that extra yard or two ? Be sure to tee it up as far forward as possible .

MEASURE WITH CARE Many of the Rules that require you to drop a ball allow some distance within which you must drop a ball ( i . e . one clublength for cart path relief or two clublengths for lateral water hazard relief ). Most players always pull out their driver to measure the area in which they must drop a ball , but that may not always be the best idea . Once you use a club to measure in a given situation you must do all subsequent measuring with that club . This includes measuring to see if a ball rolls more than two club-lengths from where it first struck a part of the course when dropped , which would require a re-drop . If there are areas near where you are dropping that you would like to avoid , such as bushes or high grass , you may want to shrink the area that the ball could possibly come to rest and not require a re-drop . The only way to shrink this area is to shorten your measuring club by selecting a wedge or putter instead of a driver from the start of the relief process .

KNOW YOUR TALENT LEVEL You are the one who must make the stroke so it is only fair that the Rules say that the

player is the sole judge as to whether his ball is unplayable . Rule 28 goes on to say that the player may deem his ball unplayable at any place on the course except when the ball is in a water hazard . One of the three options when you deem your ball unplayable , all under penalty of one stroke , is to play a ball as nearly as possible to the spot from which you just played . What does that mean ? The next time you ’ re on your least favorite green and putt the three-footer down the slope , off the green , and into the rough , you can declare the ball unplayable . By choosing the stroke-and-distance option shown above you will incur a penalty of one stroke but can place a ball on the spot from which you just played , three feet from the hole .

Although many feel that the Rules are only there to penalize players , knowing the ins and outs of the Rules can actually help you navigate your way around the course . Whether your goal is to finish a hole , break 100 , shoot your age or qualify for a VSGA championship in 2017 , use the Rules to help you get there !

Matt Smiley is the VSGA ’ s director of rules and competitions .

CHRIS LANG