In general, golf is a fairly simple game. Get the ball into the hole in as few strokes as possible. However, as simple as it is, there are many rules, including the rules of etiquette. When everyone practices golf etiquette it makes the game much better for everyone. Without etiquette the game would move slower and there would be more distractions and hazards left behind by the previous golfers. According to golf etiquette, one such hazard that should be always be repaired is any ball mark that is left on the green.

The indents left after a ball impacts the green at a high speed can cause problems for other golfers when they are trying to putt on an otherwise level surface. If you’re a regular golfer you are likely very familiar with the idea of repairing ball marks. In fact, you probably have more ball mark repair tools in your bag than you know what to do with. But do you know what to do with it when it comes to the actual repair of the mark? As it turns out, some golfers are using a method that is actually doing more damage to the green.

The infographic below shows the two most common methods and explains which way is correct.

This infographic shows the correct way to repair a ball mark without damaging the green