Golf Guides: Rules, Equipment, Practice and Courses

A golf bag, putter, miniature green and blank guidebook form a calm navy and teal scene. — Build a useful round: understand the rules, choose equipment and practice with a purpose.

Find practical guides to playing, practicing, choosing equipment, planning golf trips and exploring golf culture. Start with the decision in front of you, then use the examples and checklists to make your next step clear.

The thirty illustrated guides below were updated in October 2026. Other entries retain historical coverage and are labeled with their original year; product availability, offers and rules in those older articles may have changed.

Rules and handicaps

A miniature green, bunker and water edge stand beside a blank navy rulebook and golf ball.

Golf Rules: Practical Answers for Common On-Course Situations

Find the rule for common relief, lost-ball and penalty-area situations, with practical examples and official references.

A blank scorecard and pencil sit below three teal blocks on stepped ivory platforms.

Golf Handicap Explained: Index, Course Handicap and Playing Handicap

Understand Handicap Index, Course Handicap and Playing Handicap, calculate a worked example and post scores correctly in the U.S. system.

Practice and coaching

An iron and teed ball sit on a teal practice mat beside an alignment rod and a phone on a tripod.

Golf Swing Practice: Setup, Contact and Useful Feedback

Build a focused golf practice session around alignment, contact and ball flight, with a log that helps you and your coach assess progress.

A navy putter faces a white ball and a distant cup on a teal practice green.

Putting Practice: Start Line, Pace and Reading Greens

Practice start line, distance control and green reading with three measurable exercises and a simple way to interpret misses.

A blank notebook, iron and tablet sit in a calm coaching room with two empty chairs.

Golf Lessons: Choose a Coach and Make the Session Useful

Choose a golf coach and lesson format, prepare a useful first-session brief and turn the advice into a manageable practice plan.

Three chairs face an empty golf teaching studio with practice stations, a notebook, pencil and iron.

Choosing a Golf School: Format, Teaching Time and Follow-Through

Compare golf schools by teaching format, coached hours, group size, total cost and a usable follow-up plan.

Trays of closely cut grass, deep rough and sloping turf sit behind an iron and three balls.

Golf Tips for Common Lies and On-Course Situations

Assess rough, slopes, wind and short-game lies, then choose a manageable shot and a useful practice task.

Three miniature practice areas show putting, short grass and a fairway beside clubs and teal steps.

Golf Instruction: A Learning Path from First Contact to the Course

Follow a flexible learning sequence with practice tasks, progress checks and a plan for your first holes.

A miniature fairway with a bunker and translucent teal target area sits beside a ball and blank notebook.

Golf Course Management: Targets, Routine and Recovering After a Miss

Choose realistic targets, build a brief shot routine and review decisions after a difficult hole.

A blank scorecard, pencil and golf ball sit beside three teal bars and a miniature putting green.

Golf Scores: Read Your Scorecard and Choose What to Practice

Keep an accurate golf scorecard, distinguish gross and net scores, and use several rounds to choose a practical improvement goal.

Clubs, balls and other equipment

An iron, driver and putter rest in a navy rack beside a blank fitting notebook.

Choosing Golf Clubs: Set Makeup, Fitting and Used-Club Checks

Choose a useful set of golf clubs, prepare for a fitting, compare carry gaps and inspect used equipment before buying.

White golf balls and a conceptual layered cutaway sit on ivory platforms.

Choosing Golf Balls: Feel, Flight, Spin and a Repeatable Test

Compare golf balls by flight, spin, feel and cost with a repeatable practice test and a downloadable observation record.

An unbranded navy stand bag and teal cart bag sit beside an ivory rain hood.

Choosing a Golf Bag: Carry, Stand, Cart and Travel Needs

Compare carry, stand and cart bags using loaded comfort, club access, weather protection and a practical fit check.

A navy rain jacket and ivory polo hang above golf shoes, a folded teal layer and a cap.

Golf Apparel: Fit, Footwear, Layers and Course Dress Codes

Choose comfortable footwear and layers, check course dress requirements and care for clothing between rounds.

A putter, iron and wood stand beside golf balls, tees, a towel, ball marker and water bottle.

Golf Equipment: Build a Useful Kit and Evaluate Upgrades

Build a practical golf kit, compare buying with borrowing, and test whether an upgrade solves a real problem.

An unbranded navy riding golf cart is parked beside a course, with a blank manual in the foreground.

Golf Carts: Rental Choices and Ownership Questions

Choose between walking and riding, check a course rental, and evaluate a used golf cart with the right documentation.

Callaway Golf
Historical coverage · 2003 — Tournament and prototype-equipment coverage from Annika Sorenstam’s Safeway Classic win.

Courses and golf trips

Two miniature courses with different terrain stand beside a blank scorecard.

Choosing a Golf Course: Access, Tees, Time and Total Cost

Compare golf courses by access, suitable tees, time and complete cost, then confirm booking details before your next round.

A suitcase and golf travel cover stand beside a miniature course, blank itinerary and luggage tag.

Planning a Golf Vacation: Rounds, Travel, Budget and Backup Plans

Plan a golf trip around realistic rounds, confirmed tee times, complete costs and workable backup plans.

A miniature hotel and golf course sit beside a suitcase and two travel-comparison cards.

Golf Resorts: Compare Stay-and-Play Packages

Compare golf resort packages by confirmed course access, included rounds, total cost, cancellation terms and the needs of your whole party.

A flat coastal tabletop model groups three miniature golf-course areas along a sandy shoreline beside a suitcase.

Myrtle Beach Golf: Plan Courses Around Your Base

Plan a Myrtle Beach golf trip around course locations, lodging, travel time, maintenance checks and flexible booking.

A conceptual desert golf landscape has ivory mountains, palms, a teal fairway and a low clubhouse.

Indian Wells Golf: Plan a Visit to the Golf Resort

Plan an Indian Wells Golf Resort visit using current course information, tee-time checks, rental and practice options, and a realistic desert itinerary.

Following professional golf

Golf balls on stepped ivory plinths stand beside navy and teal columns and a blank calendar.

Golf Rankings Explained: World Rankings and Season Standings

Distinguish world golf rankings from season standings, interpret points and ranking movement, and find the official current lists.

A miniature green sits beside a blank navy leaderboard, simple silver trophy and blank desk calendar.

Following the PGA TOUR: Schedule, Leaderboards and Season Context

Find the current PGA TOUR schedule, interpret a leaderboard and connect tournament results with season standings.

Golf technology and video

A tablet displays an abstract golf-course map beside a phone, blank scorecard, ball and launch-monitor shape.

Golf Software: Choose Tools for Scoring, GPS, Practice and Simulation

Choose golf apps and simulator software by the job, device compatibility, data quality and complete subscription cost.

A phone on a tripod sits beside a golf ball, iron, practice mat and a glass panel with a play symbol.

Golf Videos: Find Useful Instruction and Film Your Practice

Choose golf instruction videos for a specific task, record consistent practice clips, and turn feedback into a useful session.

Two miniature golf carts sit on a course model beside a tablet with abstract course shapes and location dots.

GPS Golf Management Systems: Evaluate a Course Deployment

Evaluate a golf GPS fleet system with requirements, coverage checks, staff workflows, a controlled pilot and a complete cost model.

Golf Video Games
Historical coverage · 2003 — A description of Nintendo’s Mario Golf.

Books, people and golf culture

An ivory gift box holds golf balls, a folded navy towel and a blank card beneath a teal ribbon.

Golf Gifts: Choose Something the Golfer Can Use

Choose golf gifts by the recipient’s habits, preferences and opportunities to play, with practical checks for lessons, credit and equipment.

Blank navy, teal and ivory books sit beside a golf ball and a miniature putting green.

Golf Books: Build a Reading List for Your Purpose

Choose a golf book for technique, course design, history or travel, and check the edition and format before borrowing or buying.

Golf Magazines
Historical coverage · 2005 — A report on Golf Connoisseur magazine’s second issue.
Golf Calendars 2005
Historical coverage · 2004 — A listing for the USGA’s 2005 course calendar.
Golf Jokes
Historical coverage · 2003 — Listings for collections of golf jokes and quotations.
Golf Pictures
Historical coverage · 2003 — Coverage of an illustrated golf-rules book.
Erica Blasberg
Historical coverage · 2006 — A dated report on Erica Blasberg’s Puma sponsorship.

Family games and related sports

A disc-golf basket with hanging chains and a lower wire tray stands beside three plain colored discs.

Disc Golf for Beginners: Equipment, Rules and Your First Round

Choose a simple disc-golf kit, understand basic lies and scoring, and prepare for a considerate first round.

A tabletop miniature-golf lane curves toward a cup, with a putter, ball and amber arch.

Miniature Golf: A Friendly Guide to Your First Round

Plan a first miniature-golf outing, check local scoring rules, and learn simple putting and bank-shot ideas.

Golf Toys
Historical coverage · 2003 — Children’s golf toys, games and a pop-up book.

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