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18 September 2026 · 10 min read

Golf etiquette and dress code in Switzerland: what the club expects, what the exam asks and what applies in the simulator bay

On the course, etiquette mostly means pace and safety. Each club writes its own dress code. A simulator bay has none, only the rules of a shared room. What Rule 1.2 asks, what the course permit exam checks and what published dress codes say about shorts, jeans and trainers.

Golf etiquette and dress code in Switzerland: what the club expects, what the exam asks and what applies in the simulator bay — post image

Golf etiquette sounds like manners from another age. It means two things: nobody gets hit by a ball, and the round does not take five hours. The dress code is a third subject, and each club writes its own. A simulator bay has none. What applies there is what applies in any shared room.

Golf etiquette is pace and safety: Rule 1.2

Etiquette is in the Rules of Golf, in Rule 1.2. It expects three things of every player. Integrity: follow the Rules, apply your own penalties, be honest. Consideration: play at a prompt pace, look out for the safety of others, do not distract anyone over a shot. Care of the course: replace divots, smooth bunkers, repair ball marks. Serious misconduct can get a player disqualified by the Committee. Rule 1.2b also lets the Committee set its own standards of conduct as a Local Rule. Rule 1.2 says nothing about clothing. The other rules you need are in Golf rules for beginners: the twelve that count.

Migros Golf says the same in a beginner's words, as ten golden course rules:

  • Only hit when the group ahead is out of range.
  • Keep your distance and stay quiet when a playing partner is about to hit.
  • Let the group behind play through if your flight cannot keep up.
  • Replace divots and repair pitch marks.
  • Rake the bunker level.
  • Keep the trolley and the cart off the green.
  • Do not step on the putting line.
  • Leave the green as soon as everyone has holed out.
  • No phone calls on the course.
  • And the tenth: have fun.

What the course permit exam asks about etiquette

Swiss Golf's Platzreife regulation states the aim: the beginner shows that they play briskly, move safely around the course, endanger neither themselves nor others, and know the basic rules. The theory exam has 40 questions on etiquette and rules, and 28 must be correct. On the course, as a rule a Swiss PGA professional checks five etiquette criteria: safety, consideration, pace of play, right of way and care of the course. The game itself and the scorecard come on top. The whole process and the cost are in The Swiss course permit: the process, the exam, the cost.

The regulation says not a word about clothing. It only notes that a club may set further conditions for the permit. The five criteria match the list above. Safety means waiting until nobody ahead is within range. Consideration means standing still when someone hits. Pace of play and right of way mean playing briskly and letting faster groups through. Care means divots, pitch marks and bunkers.

The dress code: each club writes its own

Neither the Rules of Golf nor the permit regulation prescribe clothing. The club sets the dress code, and you find it on its website. Two published examples: the dress rules of Golf Fricktal and the recommendation of Migros Golf.

  • Golf Fricktal (Golfetikette, a document from 2014): golf shirts and polos need a collar or stand-up collar and sleeves, and men wear the shirt tucked in. Collarless shirts and T-shirts are not permitted. Blue jeans are banned, denim in other colours is allowed. Bermudas and other trousers reach at least to a hand's width above the knee. Only golf shoes with soft spikes or nubs are allowed, and the clubhouse is entered in clean shoes. For women: a top without a collar needs sleeves, a sleeveless top needs a collar, backless tops are not wanted. Trousers, bermudas and golf skirts are allowed and reach at least to mid-thigh.
  • Migros Golf (Golf & Fashion): recommended are a cap, polo shirts with a collar, long-sleeved, short-sleeved or sleeveless and tucked in, long fabric trousers, check trousers, knickerbockers or knee-length shorts, a skirt or a dress that is not too short, and golf shoes with soft spikes or comfortable sports shoes. Not recommended are hotpants, leggings, jogging trousers, miniskirts, strappy tops, T-shirts with printed motifs, football shirts, muscle shirts, cargo trousers, tracksuits, washed-out jeans and military trousers.

The difference between the two is the tone: Fricktal prescribes, Migros recommends. On substance they largely agree. Both want a collar, both allow shorts to the knee, and both are wary of jeans: Fricktal bans blue jeans, Migros advises against washed-out jeans. On shoes they part ways: Migros allows sports shoes, Fricktal only golf shoes. What your club says is on its website. Read it before the first visit.

Shorts, jeans, trainers: what goes where

  • Shorts: yes, in both dress codes, with a length. Migros Golf recommends knee-length shorts, Golf Fricktal asks for at least a hand's width above the knee. Hotpants are on Migros Golf's list of clothing not recommended. In both cases the answer is a length, not a ban.
  • Jeans: blue jeans are banned at Golf Fricktal, denim in other colours is allowed. Migros Golf advises against washed-out jeans.
  • Trainers: expressly fine at Migros Golf, where comfortable sports shoes stand next to golf shoes. At Golf Fricktal only golf shoes with soft spikes or nubs are allowed.
  • Women and men: Golf Fricktal distinguishes on the top. Men wear the shirt tucked in. For women the top may leave out either the collar or the sleeves, not both, and skirts are allowed. Migros Golf has one list for everyone.

A polo with a collar, fabric trousers or knee-length shorts and golf shoes satisfy both codes. In trainers you satisfy Migros's, not Fricktal's. Everything else is a question for a single club, and only its website or a call to the office answers it.

Dress code at a taster course: trainers are enough

For the first contact you need no golf clothing. The Migros Golf taster course names as prerequisites an interest in golf and no golf experience. You bring clothing suited to the weather and sports shoes; the golf equipment is provided. Three lessons of 150 minutes in total cost CHF 90. What a taster course costs elsewhere, and what the first hour in a simulator looks like as the alternative, is in A golf taster course in Switzerland.

In the simulator bay: four people, one shot, one mat

Nobody writes an etiquette for the bay. The Rules of Golf and the permit regulation apply to the course. Our directory lists 126 venues but has no field for dress codes or shoe rules. So we cannot say which venue asks for what. What we can say is what a shared room needs, where up to four people usually share a bay and each has a club in hand.

  • One person hits. The others stand behind them, outside the swing arc and never between the mat and the screen.
  • Practice swings only on the mat, and only when nobody is within reach. That is the same rule as on the tee.
  • Quiet when someone is over the ball. That is Rule 1.2, only indoors.
  • The time is for the bay, not per person. Four people in an hour means about fifteen minutes of hitting each. If you want more, book longer or a second bay.
  • Phone calls go outside the door. No governing body prescribes that, but the other three in the bay notice.

Shoes and the mat: whether golf shoes with spikes may go on the mat is the venue's decision, and we found no general rule on it. One published example is the house rules of Private Golf Lounge, a members-only venue: shoes and clubs are cleaned before the visit, dirty or self-marked balls are not played, there is no smoking or eating in the room, and the room is left clean. That is not golf etiquette, it is the etiquette of a room that someone else uses after you. The house rules say nothing about the kind of shoes, only that they must be cleaned. They have no dress code. Which shoe works on a mat and on a course is in Golf shoes: spikes or spikeless.

More on this: Lifting, marking and cleaning a golf ball, Golf caddie rules, How long does a round of golf take?.

What to ask the venue beforehand

  • Which shoes: trainers, golf shoes with soft spikes, or either.
  • Whether you may play your own balls or use the venue's.
  • Whether there are rental clubs and what they cost.
  • How many people may share the bay and whether the price is per bay or per person. In the directory, 80 of the 110 indoor venues publish an hourly rate, between CHF 25 and CHF 99 per bay, a median of CHF 50.
  • Whether a coach can join. 95 venues in the directory offer coaching.

The next step depends on where you play. For the course: read your club's etiquette and dress code on its website. Rule 1.2 applies on every course, the dress code only at your club. For the bay: find a venue near you in the directory, ask briefly about shoes and book the hour. What else beginners should know about the bay is in the beginners' guide, and the most common questions are answered in the FAQ. How a first round runs, from the tee time to the card, is in Your first round on a golf course.

Frequently asked questions

Can you wear shorts to play golf?

In both published dress codes, yes, with a length: Migros Golf recommends knee-length shorts, Golf Fricktal asks for at least a hand's width above the knee. Hotpants are on Migros Golf's list of clothing not recommended. What your club wants is on its website.

What does the Swiss course permit exam ask about etiquette?

The theory exam has 40 questions on etiquette and rules, and 28 must be correct. On the course, a Swiss PGA professional as a rule checks five criteria: safety, consideration, pace of play, right of way and care of the course. The regulation says nothing about clothing.

Is there a dress code in a golf simulator?

No rule prescribes one, and our directory has no field for it at any of the 126 venues. What counts is the shared room: one person hits, the others stand behind them, and the shoes are clean. Whether spikes may go on the mat is for the venue to say.

What does Rule 1.2 say about etiquette?

Three expectations of every player: integrity, meaning playing by the rules and applying penalties yourself; consideration, meaning a prompt pace, care for others' safety and not distracting anybody; and care of the course, meaning replacing divots, raking bunkers and repairing pitch marks.

What should I ask an indoor venue before a first visit?

Four things: which shoes are allowed, whether you play your own balls or the venue's, whether there are rental clubs and what they cost, and how many people may share a bay. Almost everywhere the price is per bay, not per person.

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