The Rules of Golf don’t cowl the disposal of cremains. But native legal guidelines and golf etiquette do.
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Hank from Michigan writes:
My uncle, a lifelong golf junky, handed away not too long ago and I’d like to honor him by spreading a few of his ashes on his favourite native course. It’s okay to do this, proper?
Dear Hank:
Upon his personal demise, the Etiquetteist has requested that his two non-golfer youngsters have his golf equipment melted down on the native foundry and refashioned into kitchen utensils and surgical instruments, in order that the metals and alloys may lastly be put to productive use. As for his cremains, these are to be deposited far into the tough and buried deep into steep-faced bunkers to finest mirror the way in which the Etiquetteist performed the sport.
But that’s not what you requested.
The reply to your query lies extra with legislation than it does with etiquette. No matter the place you reside on this huge, golf-loving land, odds are there are native ordinances governing the the place’s and the way’s of cremains disposal. In you residence state of Michigan, for instance, these laws range by metropolis and county, however they often comply with the rule of widespread sense. That is, should you’re not scattering on your personal land, you want written permission.
Scattering in water may be okay, however the Federal Clean Water Act mandates that this be accomplished a minimum of three nautical miles from land, so any creeks, ponds or different water hazards on your native course are a no-no to your uncle’s ashes.
Another consideration will not be ruled by any native, state or federal laws. It is agronomic. A superintendent of the Etiquetteist’s acquaintance reported that cremains dumped onto one in every of his greens triggered lingering turf issues; a soil check later discovered an extra of phosphorous, which occurs to be a main part of ash.
“I’m all for paying tribute to a loved one,” the superintendent stated. “But please, not on my most manicured turf.”
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The lesson: finest to stick to the hardier grasses of the tough and fairways. Raking into the sand will not be a unhealthy approach to go, both.
Then there’s the matter of getting permission from the course.
You may, in fact, most likely get away with scattering ashes with out getting official written log off. But that’s like dishonest in golf. Why would you need to? Especially when there’s no want to be sneaky. If you undergo the right channels, your request is nearly sure to be granted.
As a distinguished course operator informed the Etiquetteist, “Most of us consider it an honor, not an irritation.”
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