avoid

With summer in full swing across the United States, you can play with anyone, anywhere, anytime. We highlighted the 10 things all golfers should do during a round, but now we want to list 10 mistakes all golfers should avoid every time they play:

10. Never leave your cart in front of green; always towards back or near next tee

You should park your cart at the closest point between the green and the next tee. That point should also be in the back of the green, so you are not walking towards the fairway you just played, further delaying the group behind you. Cart etiquette is important, but so is using common sense.

9. Speaking of carts, keep them 30 feet away from greens and tees

You should never bring your cart close to the green unless you have a medical condition forbidding you from walking a considerable distance.

The same can be said for teeing areas.

8. No need to take more than three practice swings

The pace of play on a course is important. And no, you are not on the PGA Tour. So do not take more than three practice swings and waste everyone’s time, including yours.

I usually take two to get in a rhythm, then swing away.

7. Don’t arrive less than 20 minutes before tee time

Scrambling to the first tee in a dizzying hurry is terrible, but it angers the pro shop staff, too. Be there on time so you can ease into your round and have a proper warmup.

6. Don’t skip out on the putting green beforehand

You will have more strokes on the green than anywhere else. It’s essential to get the speed of the greens down beforehand so you don’t make a mess of things over the first couple of holes.

5. Missed ball marks damage greens

Fix your ball marks.

Nobody wants to play on damaged greens, and nobody wants a good putt disrupted by a bump.

4. Don’t place wedges/clubs in rough

Every golfer has made the mistake of leaving a club behind at some point.

If you bring your wedge or short iron to a green, put it on the green or fringe—somewhere easily visible. I usually place clubs next to the flagstick—a good reminder not to forget them, too.

3. Replace divots, fix ball marks

Treat the golf course like your own home.

Replace divots and use dirt mix if available. And always, always repair your ball marks on the greens. Fix another one, too. A course’s most valuable assets are the greens—take care of them.

2. The five-minute rule

If you need to take more than five minutes looking for a golf ball, it is clearly not in the spot you think it is—or it is buried in the rough where you would struggle to hack it out.

Take a drop and move on.

1. Don’t be too hard on yourself

It’s a frustrating game that even angers Tiger Woods, Scottie Scheffler, and Bryson DeChambeau. Have fun.

Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.

Sparks were flying Saturday at the Formula 1 Spanish Grand Prix.

Not during qualifying — that has yet to take place — but to paraphrase the legendary Allen Iverson, we’re talking about practice.

The final free practice session ahead of qualifying at the Spanish Grand Prix saw tempers flare in two separate incidents, one involving Lance Stroll and Lewis Hamilton and the other involving Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc. All four drivers were summoned to meet with race stewards following the session, and following those meetings race officials decided to show some leniency, rather than hand down grid penalties.

Let’s dive into both incidents, and the decisions from the stewards.

Lewis Hamilton and Lance Stroll

Let’s first talk about the incident between Lewis Hamilton and Lance Stroll. That incident occurred during the session, near the apex of Turn 5. As you will see here, Hamilton is operating slowly along the right side of the track when Stroll comes up behind him. You will see the seven-time Drivers’ Champion wave his hand towards Stroll and concede over the radio to his team that he did not see the Aston Martin driver, but then Stroll looks to turn into Hamilton’s W15 in what the commentators on F1TV termed as perhaps a “ … bit of a sidepod rebuke:”

Both drivers were summoned to meet with race officials at 2:00 p.m. local time. Shortly after the hearing, the race officials released their decision, which was a reprimand for Stroll.

As you can see from the stewards’ report, during the hearing Stroll admitted that “ … he wanted to express his displeasure to the other driver by pulling over on him at the exit.” However, the hearing found that the contact between the two was “incidental,” and while the move by Stroll was found to be “erratic” race stewards did not believe it to be “dangerous,” and therefore thought a reprimand was more in line with previous decisions.

Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc

The incident between Lando Norris and Charles Leclerc came later in the session. The Ferrari driver was on a push lap at the very end of FP3 and came upon Norris near Turn 5. The McLaren driver was moving at a much slower pace and on the left side of the track, off the racing line.

Leclerc was frustrated when he came across Norris, and let the McLaren driver know it:

Following the session, both Norris and Leclerc were summoned to meet with race stewards at 2:15 p.m. local time. In the moments ahead of qualifying, the stewards released their decision, which was right in line with the decision handed down regarding the Stroll-Hamilton incident: A reprimand for Leclerc.

Similar to the Stroll incident, Leclerc indicated that he felt he was impeded by Norris and that it “ … upset him.” Leclerc then admitted that he aborted his push lap, but then stated that he “misjudged the position of his car” and made contact with Norris as a result.

Race officials, as they did with Stroll, found the driving “erratic” but not “dangerous,” and determined that a reprimand was in line with previous decisions.

However, some wondered if these decisions were the right approach. Speaking on F1TV ahead of qualifying David Coulthard stated that both Stroll and Leclerc could probably consider themselves “incredibly lucky to get away with just a reprimand.”

Remember, this was just practice.

Qualifying begins in minutes.

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