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Rules Seminars

These seminars are tailored to provide basic instruction for those newer to the sport, as well as meeting the demands of more experienced referees  looking for tournament specific guidance. There are three levels:

Level 1 Rules Seminar

  • A focus on the Player’s Edition of the Rules of Golf. This one-day seminar is taught by experienced instructors from many national associations and federations.
  • It is also available online as the Rules Academy (link to)

Level 2 Rules Seminar

  • This consists of a two-and-a-half day seminar conducted by a national governing body. The seminar looks at the more important playing Rules in detail.

Level 3 Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar (TARS)

  • This three-day seminar is conducted by The R&A. It is held annually, usually in February in St Andrews, and it is The R&As leading seminar. All R&A affiliates are invited to send a maximum of two delegates, with additional TARS courses held around the world to meet demand. The purpose is to give guidance and practical advice on running tournaments and refereeing, including sessions on course set-up, course marking, pace of play, suspension of play and starting and recording. 
At each stage of the Rules Education process, there is the opportunity to sit an appropriate exam.  Ideally, delegates should successfully complete each stage before progressing to the next level, attaining and building a comprehensive Rules knowledge. It is also vital that practical experience is obtained to become an effective exponent on the Rules, refereeing and running competitions.

Upcoming Dates

Download The App

The Official R&A App for the 2023 Rules of Golf includes nearly 30 diagrams and over 50 how-to videos that help to explain the Rules and gives guidance for many common situations. Other features include:
  • The Player’s Rule Finder is intended to help you quickly find a summary of the Rule you need to answer your Rules questions.
  • A new ‘Learn’ section incorporates a video player to allow you to access all Rules videos in one location.
  • The Learn section also includes a new and improved Rules Quiz.
  • A new ‘Rules News’ section will include Rules articles and news and you will have the option to turn on push notifications so that you never miss a new article or update.
The App is available in more than 12 languages, with up to 29 languages expected to be made available in the coming months.