STUPID GOLF PROBLEMS
Am I raking Bunkers Correctly? BY CHRISTOPHER POWERS
but it’s the proper way to do it, and the group behind you, the one behind them, and so on and so forth, will thank you for it. Maybe not literally, but in spirit. Using “pace of play” as an excuse to not take care of the course is B S, and if a group behind is pissed that you are taking too long to rake a bunker, then they should be shamed for it. Lastly, as you’re doing your final pushing and pulling when you exit the bunker, flip the rake over and push and pull with the “smooth” side to smooth the edges. This is a move straight from the caddies of the PGA Tour, who are pro bunker-rakers. This will allow balls to roll more towards the centre/ low points of the bunkers and not get caught up around the edges, making for impossible, even unfair shots. Of course, the more woke golf nerds out there will tell you that bunkers should be true hazards again, and that rakes should be banned. That’s more an argument for the highest levels of golf. For everyday golfers, rakes aren’t go- ing anywhere. As long as they are here you should use them properly, with the golfers behind you in mind.
fellow golfers. That said, just a simple once over rake job sort of doesn’t cut it, especially for greenside traps. Not saying you should take care in fairway bunkers, but the greenside traps require your full attention. That’s where you’re digging in the most, that’s where the most foot traffic occurs, and that’s where you’re most likely to screw someone over in a group behind by not giving it the proper attention. Rule No 1: Never, ever enter or exit from the highest point of a bunker. Al- ways find the low point, regardless of where you ball sits, so not to damage the grass on the edge of the bunker’s high points or the faces of the bunker. And you can bring the rake with you to make the job easier. Just don’t test the sand with it before playing your shot. After you’ve played your shot, grab your rake, teeth side down, and begin “pushing” and “pulling” over the spot you’ve played the shot from as well as where your stance was. This will smooth out all the imperfections, as opposed to just raking in one direction. This may seem like it’s taking forever,
SOMETIMES, WE TACKLE big issues in Stupid Golf Problems, like how to plan a golf trip.
Sometimes, we tackle smaller ones, like where to leave your wedge after you’ve chipped to a green. This one is of a smaller, more granular variety, bunker-raking. There is, evidently, a right and wrong way to do it. And let me just say this now, especially to those who may have taken up golf in the year, I don’t know, let’s call it 2020: doing it at all is a great first step. It’s depressing to say that, but there are golfers who’ve played this game for decades that don’t even do the bare minimum. Hit into a big fairway bunker at many courses and you’ll see just how little respect everyday golfers have for not only the course but their
PHOTOGRAPH BY MIKE MULHOLLAND
24 GOLF DIGEST SOUTH AFRIC A
JUNE 2026
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