Golf is a great game, tremendous challenge, both physically and mentally as well, and awesome social activity that connects together numerous kinds of different people, united under the common goal. It might seem silly to consider golf dangerous, but injuries do happen. Balls and clubs are really hard objects that might cause a considerable damage if they hit you, so golfers need to be aware of the dangers coming from repetitive stress injuries and something that does not come to your mind at first – lightning.

In this article I will give you a few tips in order to stay safe on the golf course.

There is always a potential for injury. Golf swings put a whole lot of a pressure on your back and your joints, particularly if you are used to swinging too hard, or your technique lacks elegance. It is important to be properly warmed up too, striking without warming up might cause a lot of injuries that would not happen if golfer was properly warmed up. Torn muscles, back pain, pain in the shoulders, hands, wrists, elbow tendonitis are some of the most common golf injuries.

Somewhat uncommon, but more serious injuries, occur if someone gets hit by a golf ball or club. We have seen a lot of movies where people use golf clubs to hit their opponents, but those kind of martial arts does not only happen on TV, people have actually died from being hit by golf balls. Oh, I almost forgot: golf carts. They look nice and somewhat incapable of causing a serious injury even if one falls out from the cart, but let me clarify something: Golfers have been known to get serious injuries when driving golf carts in a hazardous manner, or if they get somewhat acrobatic – dangling their feet or hands out of a cart while it is moving. I can imagine inflicting a serious injuries is not a price one should pay for sticking your hands out in order to feel a nice spring breeze.

Nice thing is that most of the injuries can be avoided if golfers use common sense and follow the rules.

Always warm up, always, before starting the game. I cannot stress out the importance of warming up. Golfer can warm up by taking a light walk, jogging, doing jumping jacks and so on. Stretching is a must too. Trunk twists and other stretches to help loosen the back, stretching your shoulders, arms, elbows and wrists because that will save you from injuring yourself due to the repetitive actions that will happen later on the pitch. I mentioned before that practice makes perfect, so picking up a few easy practice swings and gradually increasing the range of motion is recommended and extremely important. Hint: at the beginning of the swing practice, use short irons and wedges that call for a shorter swing. Later on work with long irons and woods that do require full swing. As I said, this will help you play better game, and prevent most of the injuries as well.

Sunny days call for a sunscreen. If you are playing on a sunny day it is important not to get carried on and to forget to put sunscreen on any skin that is exposed. Wearing a hat to shade your eyes and protect the face is also highly recommended. Let’s take these advices seriously because a typical round of golf takes more than 4 hours to complete and that most probably you will be out in the sun the whole time, especially if you walk the course instead of riding in a cart. Sunburns are not nice, and neither is dehydration – another problem you might encounter on hot days. Drink a lot of water before, during and after the game.

Once you are on the course you need to be aware of your surroundings at all times and to keep track of the people around you. It is easy to know the locations of the players in your group which is generally be 4 or less people, but there might be other groups on the field and one cannot forget about them.

Whenever you have a golf club and preparing to swing, be sure that everybody around you is in safe distance. Don’t swing your club if someone else is near you. When others are swinging, do not assume that they are watching out for you, and don’t stand in a place where you could be hit by a ball when someone else is playing. In case you hit the ball towards someone (they might be hidden behind the tree), yell FORE as loud as you can. That will alert everyone that ball is coming to their way and that they should take cover. If you hear someone yelling Fore!, don’t turn your head to look for the ball, instead seek cover at the closest location.

Lightning can be a big hazard on the golf course. Carrying metal clubs increases your risk of getting struck by a lightning. Check the weather before you head to the course and never play during a thunderstorm. Today, most golf courses will sound an alarm if lightning is spotted in the area. If you hear alarm or lightening, go to the closest clubhouse right away. If you cannot make it to the clubhouse, do not go under the trees, but try to find a bathroom or other shelter that has walls. If no shelter is available, drop the clubs and move away from them. Stay away from trees and water.

Golf carts should only be driven by licensed drivers. If you are planning to drive a cart, read the directions and safety rules posted on the cart, it is not difficult, but as I said in the introduction, carts can be dangerous if driven in unproper way. That includes going to off road across bumpy terrain, no matter how attractive it might sound. Look for other carts and make sure not to hang your feet, legs, arms and hands out of a cart.

Common sense and a little thinking about what could happen will make you go long way towards keeping you without injuries. Use your head and you will enjoy in golf for years without being hurt.