Some of you will likely see that headline and accuse me of blasphemy, but please hear me out, OK?

I’ve been giving this topic a lot of thought for a while, ever since reading PGA Tour professional Max Homa’s take on the subject:

“If you are a casual golfer not playing tournaments, and I can’t stress this enough, do whatever you want. This game sucks and is impossible. Just have fun.”

            I’d carry that a bit further than just “playing tournaments” . . . to playing tournaments at the highest level.  Almost all regular club and recreational golfer events will have some kind of local rule in play, whether that’s waiving the 14-club limit, to offering “gimmees” under a certain length to whatever.  And we won’t even go to “getting strokes” off your score because of your handicap.

            But what about your everyday casual rounds, even when you might be playing your buddies for a few bucks?

            Max is right, this game is darn near impossible, which makes it so appealing to most of us.  But do we have to make it harder on ourselves that what the tour professionals face every round?  We don't get perfect lies, consistent bunkers and flawless course conditions, so we are really playing a much harder game than the pros do.

Back to the title of today’s post, I suggest a relatively small percentage of golfers play strictly by the Rules of Golf every round, and those are mostly members of the best private clubs or those who compete at the highest level.  And if you are not playing those perfect courses or testing your game at the highest level, why not do those little things that make golf more enjoyable and less maddening?

I certainly might be wrong, so I would like to hear from you on the following topics:

•       -   Do you ALWAYS play the ball as you find it?  If you do, you’re playing a much tougher game that the men and women who compete at the highest level.  You don’t experience the same perfect fairways, perfect bunkers, even perfect rough.  Be honest here, wouldn’t golf be more fun if you got consistently perfect lies like they do?  So, why not give yourself those?
•       -  Do you ALWAYS putt out?  The basic notion of golf is to finish every hole, and the highest level of golf requires it, but how many of us really do that?  Do your buddies hit the short ones back to you often/always?  Is that wrong?
•       -  Do you carry only 14 clubs?  Most club events in waive the 14-club limit, but what’s in your bag?
•       Do you ever change brand/model of ball in the middle of a round?  Maybe a “water ball” for those holes that present that challenge?

The point is this . . . do our little “indiscretions” with the Rules of Golf really damage the game?  Or make it more enjoyable?