BEGINNERS GUIDE TO GOLF

For those who don’t play golf in the real world or for those who are new to Second Life golf, we have created a getting-started guide to take you through some of the rules and tactics that you will need to know.

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At the beginning of each Golf Course, you will find their group joiner and their scorecard. You will normally need to be in that group and have it active to be able to rez your ball. Scorecards vary, but most come with a notecard explaining their use. We recommend you read that before you use that scorecard.

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DEFINITIONS:

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• Par: the number of strokes it should take to get from the tee box into the hole. Par on every hole will always account for 2 Putts to get into the hole. Every point beyond that is what it’s assumed it will take to get on the green. A Par 5 means it’s assumed it will take 3 shots to get to the green and 2 putts to hole out.

• Birdie: when you score 1 below par.

• Eagle: when you score 2 below par.

• Bogey: when you score 1 over par.

• Double Bogey: when you score 2 over par.

• Mulligan: This is a do-over, meaning a second try. They are not allowed for tournament play, and when playing against friends, make sure you have established the rules on how these can be used.

• Par Round: a round where you made par. A scratch player is someone who always gets par or better.

• Hazards: hazards are any obstacles on the course, such as rocks, trees, water, sand, and rough.

• Approach: your last shot to get you onto the green is referred to as an Approach or an Approach Shot.

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THE COURSE:

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Let’s first discuss the elements that makes up a golf course.

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1. Tee Box: this isn't really terrain but a starting point. There is no surface influence that reacts to a ball since your balls will never land on a tee.

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2. Green: this is a putting surface that the ball lands on. They are normally soft and designed to grip the ball. Your cup and flag are always on the green. If you land on a green and your HUD does not show you are on the green, your putter won't be as effective, and you can either hit harder with a putter or do a chip shot.

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3. Bunker or Sand Trap: these are hazards you want to avoid. Hitting out of sand is tricky and will cost you about 50% power from your club. With the Truegolf system, woods will not work. If you are nowhere near the green, it is often best to take a short shot out of the sand then resume your play. It will cost you a stroke but ensures you don’t get too far off the course or get into more trouble.

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4. Water Hazards: losing balls in water is the fastest way to ruin a good score. If you do land in water, stand on the nearest spot to that water but not closer to the ball and, without your scorecard going red, swing from there. You will get a 1-stroke penalty whenever you go into the water, so no need to stand in the water thinking you are saving shots. Presently, there is a problem with how SL scripts read water. It's affecting all golf systems, and the scripters making scorecards (Namely Certified Lunasea) have tried to address this with LL with no results yet.

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5. Rough: this is long grass or rocks off to the side of the fairway and around the green. The rough plays a lot like sand and won't use woods or drivers. The ball will go further out of the rough than sand, but again, be cautious and just try to get the ball back onto the fairway or onto a green.

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6. Fairway: this is the central area between the tee box and the green. Ideally, you always want to stay on the fairway until you get onto the green. A short shot onto a fairway is always better than a long shot into a hazard.

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7. Dog Leg: refers to a bend in the course. Dog legs add a challenge of getting around the curve in the course. Trying to shortcut a dog leg will often lead to trouble.

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8. The 19th Hole: Is not a hole at all in the sense of golf but is a watering hole, aka the bar. When someone says “I’ll meet you at the 19th hole,” it means they will meet you at the clubhouse.

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CLUBS:

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Driver: for long shots off the tee. Not recommended for fairway shots.

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Fairway Woods or Woods: these can be used on the tee box or fairway. They are bigger clubs with more weight behind the clubface and provide a lower and longer trajectory. You can also add backspin to a Wood.

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Irons: these are perhaps the most used clubs in your set. The higher the number, the shorter the distance and the higher the trajectory. Given that, they are also ideal for chip shots near the green when you want more roll and less height. Height is influenced by wind and can lead to less accuracy.

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Wedges: wedges have the most loft. By design, they are intended to get under the ball with a lot of lower club weight. This makes them ideal for getting out of rough grass or sand when you have to get the ball up quickly.

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Putters: in most cases, putting is half your game. A par 4, for example, is designed to have two shots to the green then two putts. 

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SHOTS:

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Golf consists of 5 basic shots:

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1. Drives: the first shot off the Tee Box. Make sure you are in the right spot on each tee. The scorecards normally turn red when you are not in the correct spot. You don’t always use a driver on the tee. Many shorter holes need a fairway wood or an iron, and there are cases where a driver can actually give you a distance that can hurt you by having bad placement, such as behind or near obstacles that you have to clear.

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2. Fairway Shots: when the ball is in play in the fairway and not in the rough or other hazards.

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3. Wedge Shots: wedge shots aren't the same as chip shots, though they are similar. A wedge goes high and lands flat with little roll. Best used when trying to clear a hazard.

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4. Chip Shot: In real-world golf, a chip shot is accomplished by moving your weight to the back foot and your hands forward. This brings the clubface more perpendicular to the ground and pushes the ball out. Truegolf has a unique feature to this in your HUD. With a chip shot, you use an iron, not a wedge. The ball will stay lower to the ground and roll better, increasing your accuracy while providing a greater chance of going into the hole.

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5. Putts: putts are only used on the green. If you are not on the green and your HUD doesn't show it, use a chip shot or a higher power setting with a putter to get to the cup. This is one of those SL glitches that you can never be fully prepared for. The best way to practice is from off a green to see how your ball rolls.

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6. Back Spin: This is not so much a shot as a feature within the shots. Backspin stops the ball faster. The higher back spin, the faster the ball stops. This is most often used on approach shots but also works on longer shots when you have hazard areas to avoid at the end of the fairway.

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HOW TO play the truegolf vgs hud:

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PRO TIP: Enable your Hover Tips. In Firestorm, it’s in your Preferences > User Interface > 3D World. Check Show Hover Tips and All Objects. After this is enabled, you can mouse over targets to see their distance.

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1. Walk up to the ball or where you want the ball and face your target. If your scorecard or VG Caddy turns red, you are not in the right spot. Always stand directly over the ball, facing your target. You can also use Mouse look to direct your stance more accurately.

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2. Select a club from your HUD. It will tell you in the text window which club you selected.

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3. You can change clubs as much as you want. You can also click the same club you already selected to take you out of play mode.

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4. Use the arrow that appears over the ball to aim. This is a left or right arrow on your keyboard. Just tap it until it's aimed how you want. Over the aiming arrow is a wind arrow that shows the wind direction. Keep this in mind when you aim your shot.

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5. Click the ground to start your swing. Hold your left mouse button down until the Power Indicator reaches the level you want, then release.

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6. Use the binocular icon to zoom in on the ball. Hit your ESC key if this doesn't work.

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7. You can either use the walking icon to move to the ball or click the ball marker to teleport to that spot. The walk icon will not work over 60 meters.

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8. Rinse and repeat!

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"The most important shot in golf is the next one." - Ben Hogan

ETIQUETTE:

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• The number one rule in golf is to respect other players and their game. This means waiting until they have cleared the hole, giving them room to tee off, and keeping gestures to a minimum.

• The first person to shoot is always the furthest from the hole; in other words, the person furthest from the hole goes first.

• The first person to tee off is the person with the lowest score on the last hole.

• Pick up your markers so they are out of the way of others as quickly as possible.

• Remove markers or balls if you leave the course.

• If you use carts, don’t drive over other players games and stay on the cart path as much as possible. Never leave a game with your cart on the course or blocking the path.

• If you come across slower players, ask if you can play through before you crowd up on them. At the same time, if a faster player approaches you, let them know they can play through and yield them the hole.