Most Abused Golf Rules

[mudfish]

From another site... I didn't write this...

http://www.deeprough.com/index.php/2007/09/04/abused-golf-rules/

 

 

 

1. Giving advice on the course:

 

You cannot ask what club a fellow-competitor or opponent used, or tell anyone how to execute a swing. You can ask your partner what club she used.

 

You cannot ask how far it is from your ball (but you can ask what the yardage is from a permanent marker that is public knowledge).

 

You cannot ask if your ball is playable if someone finds a lost ball for you (but you can ask for Rules of Golf information on what your options are for an unplayable lie).

 

2. Grounding a club in a hazard:

 

Before hitting a ball out of a bunker or water hazard, you are prohibited from touching the ground in the hazard with your club or hand, even when setting up to the ball. You may not touch or move any loose impediments (such as rocks or leaves), nor test the condition of the sand before hitting.

 

3. Where to play a ball which is in a water hazard:

 

You cannot drop a ball along the imaginary line known as the “line of flight.”

 

For a regular water hazard, marked with yellow stakes or lines, there are three options: 1)play the ball as it lies; or, under penalty of one stroke, 2)play another ball from where the original ball was struck into the hazard; or 3)drop behind the hazard, keeping the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped.

 

For a lateral water hazard, marked with red stakes or lines, there are five options, the first three are the same as for a regular hazard. The other two options are also under penalty of one stroke, 4)drop 2 club lengths from the point of entry into the hazard; or 5)drop 2 club lengths from point on the opposite margin, equidistant from the hole.

 

 

4. Improving your lie or position by moving growing things:

 

You cannot improve the position or lie of your ball, the area of your intended swing, or your line of play by moving or bending anything growing or fixed, or moving or pressing anything down with your club or foot, unless you are taking your stance or actually making a stroke.

 

5. Procedure for a lost ball:

 

If a ball is lost or out-of-bounds, the player MUST go back and hit again from the point where the last shot was played (one stroke penalty). If you lose your ball on your drive, you must return to the tee (and may re-tee the ball) to play your third shot, etc.

 

Golfers commonly look for a lost ball longer than the 5 minutes allowed. The time begins when the golfer or partner start looking for the ball.

 

6. Playing a provisional ball:

 

When a golfer hits a ball from the teeing ground and feels the ball may be lost or out-of-bounds, she should wait for all other players in the group to tee off, then hit her “provisional” ball. If the first ball is lost or out-of-bounds, the provisional ball will become the ball in play with one penalty stroke. In other words, the player lies three. If the first ball is found on the golf course, it remains the ball in play and the provisional ball MUST be picked up without any penalty. (Remember to always announce that the second ball you're hitting is a provisional and use the word “provisional,” or the original ball is out of play and you are lying three.)

 

Any other time you hit a ball that may be lost or out-of-bounds, you MUST announce and play the “provisional” ball before going forward to search for the first ball. NEVER say “I am going back to hit a provisional ball.”

 

Be sure to clearly identify the two balls with different brands, numbers or marks to be sure which ball is first and which is second.

 

7. Taking relief from immovable obstructions:

 

If a player's ball comes to rest on or close to an immovable obstruction such as a sprinkler head, road or cartpath, and the lie, stance or area of intended swing is interfered with by this obstruction, the player is allowed to drop a ball within one club length of the nearest point of relief, providing it's no closer to the hole than where the ball originally had come to rest.

 

The player should determine the nearest point of relief using the club she expects to play her next stoke. Then she may use any club to measure the one club length area in which to drop the ball.

 

The nearest point of relief is the point where the ball will be played which is nearest to where the original ball lies, which is no closer to the hole and which, if the ball were so positioned, no interference would exist for the lie of the ball, the stance or the intended area of the swing.

 

8. What to do if your ball is unplayable:

 

When a ball comes to rest under a large bush, some golfers think they can measure the 2 club lengths from the edge of the bush. This is WRONG — the 2 club lengths MUST be measured from the ball's position.

 

There are actually three options for a ball declared unplayable by a player: under penalty of one stroke, 1)play a ball from where the ball was originally played; 2)play a ball within 2 club lengths from where it lies in the unplayable position; or 3)keep the position where the ball lay unplayable between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped.

 

9. Touching the line of putt:

 

On the putting green, a player may not touch the line of putt other than to: 1)move loose impediments by picking them up or brushing them aside with a hand or club; 2)address the ball; or 3)to mark and lift the ball or remove movable obstructions. The player can repair old hole plugs or ball marks, but not spike marks.

[jamo]

3. Where to play a ball which is in a water hazard:

 

You cannot drop a ball along the imaginary line known as the “line of flight.”

 

For a regular water hazard, marked with yellow stakes or lines, there are three options: 1)play the ball as it lies; or, under penalty of one stroke, 2)play another ball from where the original ball was struck into the hazard; or 3)drop behind the hazard, keeping the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped.

 

For a lateral water hazard, marked with red stakes or lines, there are five options, the first three are the same as for a regular hazard. The other two options are also under penalty of one stroke, 4)drop 2 club lengths from the point of entry into the hazard; or 5)drop 2 club lengths from point on the opposite margin, equidistant from the hole.

 

I think this is the most abused one. A lot of people don't know the difference between a water hazard, lateral hazard, and OB. Or they know the difference, but don't know how it affects play.

[GolfSpy Dave]

Thanks Mudfish. Your post is quite informative.

For courses where casual play is the norm, it would probably be helpful for marshals to remind players of how to hit a provisional ball. Pace of play is often slowed by the searching for balls miss hit from the tee. It could of course backfire if they also have to now search for the provisional in the rough too.

 

The marshal/starter also then has an opening to discuss pace of play, in general.

 

Great thread.

[Matt Saternus]

While I agree that playing by the rules is important, going back to the tee to hit a lost tee ball would kill pace of play. My uncle used to do this...now no one will golf with him. If you're trying to keep a really good handicap or you play competitively, I think following the rule book very strictly is nice, but for most of us, as long as everyone plays according to the same "casual" rules, the whole group can be happy.

[jamo]

While I agree that playing by the rules is important, going back to the tee to hit a lost tee ball would kill pace of play. My uncle used to do this...now no one will golf with him. If you're trying to keep a really good handicap or you play competitively, I think following the rule book very strictly is nice, but for most of us, as long as everyone plays according to the same "casual" rules, the whole group can be happy.

 

That's why if you're ball goes anywhere near a hazard you should hit a provisional. I'm not aiming this at you, but it's amazing how many people have never heard of a provisional, and it hardly takes any extra time.

[NGage]

I think this is the most abused one. A lot of people don't know the difference between a water hazard, lateral hazard, and OB. Or they know the difference, but don't know how it affects play.

 

Agreed....more than once or twice I've gone round and round with someone on the course trying to explain this to them. Yet still, the guy wants to go up 100yds of where it went in the hazard because of how far he carried it into the hazard.

[NGage]

While I agree that playing by the rules is important, going back to the tee to hit a lost tee ball would kill pace of play. My uncle used to do this...now no one will golf with him. If you're trying to keep a really good handicap or you play competitively, I think following the rule book very strictly is nice, but for most of us, as long as everyone plays according to the same "casual" rules, the whole group can be happy.

 

Most golfers would do well, and help pace of play, by hitting more provisionals. If nothing else it gives you an extra swing to work out the swing.

[mudfish]

I have a question??? Is there a limit to the number of provisional you can hit per round??? Obviously you want 0, but sometime you just have one of those days where this might be a good hing to know...

[jamo]

I have a question??? Is there a limit to the number of provisional you can hit per round??? Obviously you want 0, but sometime you just have one of those days where this might be a good hing to know...

 

Nope. And a provisional doesn't even count as a shot if you don't use that ball.

[mudfish]

Nope. And a provisional doesn't even count as a shot if you don't use that ball.

 

I never knew that...huh... thanks... but you do need to make an honest effort to find the ball...

[jamo]

Here is all of rule 27-2 from the USGA Rules of Golf

 

27-2. Provisional Ball

a. Procedure

 

If a ball may be lost outside a water hazard or may be out of bounds, to save time the player may play another ball provisionally in accordance with Rule 27-1. The player must inform his opponent in match play or his marker or a fellow-competitor in stroke play that he intends to play a provisional ball, and he must play it before he or his partner goes forward to search for the original ball.

 

If he fails to do so and plays another ball, that ball is not a provisional ball and becomes the ball in play

under penalty of stroke and distance

(Rule 27-1); the original ball is lost.

 

(Order of play from teeing ground - see Rule 10-3.)

 

Note: If a provisional ball played under Rule 27-2a might be lost outside a water hazard or out of bounds, the player may play another provisional ball. If another provisional ball is played, it bears the same relationship to the previous provisional ball as the first provisional ball bears to the original ball.

 

b. When Provisional Ball Becomes Ball in Play

 

The player may play a provisional ball until he reaches the place where the original ball is likely to be. If he makes a stroke with the provisional ball from the place where the original ball is likely to be or from a point nearer the hole than that place, the original ball is lost and the provisional ball becomes the ball in play

under penalty of stroke and distance

(Rule 27-1).

 

If the original ball is lost outside a water hazard or is out of bounds, the provisional ball becomes the ball in play,

under penalty of stroke and distance

(Rule 27-1).

 

If it is known or virtually certain that the original ball is in a water hazard, the player must proceed in accordance with Rule 26-1.

 

Exception: If it is known or virtually certain that the original ball is in an obstruction (Rule 24-3) or an abnormal ground condition (Rule 25-1c), the player may proceed under the applicable Rule.

 

c. When Provisional Ball to Be Abandoned

 

If the original ball is neither lost nor out of bounds, the player must abandon the provisional ball and continue playing the original ball. If he makes any further strokes at the provisional ball, he is playing a wrong ball and the provisions of Rule 15-3 apply.

 

Note: If a player plays a provisional ball under Rule 27-2a, the strokes made after this Rule has been invoked with a provisional ball subsequently abandoned under Rule 27-2c and penalty strokes incurred solely by playing that ball are disregarded.

[Matt Saternus]

That's why if you're ball goes anywhere near a hazard you should hit a provisional. I'm not aiming this at you, but it's amazing how many people have never heard of a provisional, and it hardly takes any extra time.

 

Yeah, I think that's fair. I know for myself, if I watch one ball sail OB, I can make a pretty solid guess as to where the next one is going (hint, it's OB). I suppose the solution is to hit the first one in play.

[jamo]

I suppose the solution is to hit the first one in play.

 

If only it was that easy.

[NGage]

That's why if you're ball goes anywhere near a hazard you should hit a provisional. I'm not aiming this at you, but it's amazing how many people have never heard of a provisional, and it hardly takes any extra time.

 

Just a quick note:

 

The rules do not allow for you to hit a provisional for a hazard....only for a potentially lost ball or for a ball potentially out of bounds.

 

If you think your ball may be in a hazard, you must first go and look for it (if you re-hit, that new ball is the ball now in play and the original ball must be abandoned)...then if not found, it must be a "reasonable certainty" for you to assume it's in the hazard, and you play by the rules for the type of hazard involved. A "reasonable certainty" is defined as someone seeing it enter the hazard, or there being no other place for it to be. If there is even the slightest chance that the ball is somewhere other than the hazard - then - it is deemed a lost ball.

[jamo]

Just a quick note:

 

The rules do not allow for you to hit a provisional for a hazard....only for a potentially lost ball or for a ball potentially out of bounds.

 

The Rules seem to disagree with you, I posted rule 27-2 above. Here is a quote: "If a ball may be lost outside a water hazard or may be out of bounds, to save time the player may play another ball provisionally in accordance with Rule 27-1."

 

I could be wrong but that is how I read it.

[NGage]

The Rules seem to disagree with you, I posted rule 27-2 above. Here is a quote: "If a ball may be lost outside a water hazard or may be out of bounds, to save time the player may play another ball provisionally in accordance with Rule 27-1."

 

I could be wrong but that is how I read it.

 

This is the part that tells you no provisional for a shot possibly in a hazard.

[DJNiich]

This is the part that tells you no provisional for a shot possibly in a hazard.

You actually can if you say

 

"I'm hitting a provisional for a ball lost, Not in a hazard."

 

That's what the golf team and rules clinics do for you.

[GolfSpy Dave]

Used the cart path rule today. Went from a view of the green to under the trees. Should have hit from the concrete..

 

[Matt Saternus]

Used the cart path rule today. Went from a view of the green to under the trees. Should have hit from the concrete..

 

 

Only if you had a friend's club to borrow.

[Andrew Bush]

i like assumed rules at golf courses ones not in any rule book or on the card such as, flower beds etc free drop but not lsited on card, just a pet peeve

 

 

heres a good question u ahve a course with a bunch of rock walls for keepin dirt in place etc is this a immovable object if it is in the normal course of play?

[xxio]

Not even close. Nearest Point of Relief. Just like Sactown said, it may put you in a worse off situation.

 

Everyone thinks a "free drop", frees you up for a clear shot to the green.

[JBones]

Only if you had a friend's club to borrow.

I used to only have 13 permanent clubs in my bag, so I would throw in an old 7I and a left handed 7I, just in case I needed them for a peculiar shot.

[Kanoito]

7. Taking relief from immovable obstructions:

 

If a player's ball comes to rest on or close to an immovable obstruction such as a sprinkler head, road or cartpath, and the lie, stance or area of intended swing is interfered with by this obstruction, the player is allowed to drop a ball within one club length of the nearest point of relief, providing it's no closer to the hole than where the ball originally had come to rest.

 

The player should determine the nearest point of relief using the club she expects to play her next stoke. Then she may use any club to measure the one club length area in which to drop the ball.

 

The nearest point of relief is the point where the ball will be played which is nearest to where the original ball lies, which is no closer to the hole and which, if the ball were so positioned, no interference would exist for the lie of the ball, the stance or the intended area of the swing.

 

I've always had trouble with this rule.

Is there an easy way to know what's part of the course and what's an obstruction?

For example: a huge rock near the water? one of those wooden huts to hide from rain?

 

I always thought man-made is an obstruction and you get free relief. Natural obstructions (trees, bushes, rocks, etc) are part of the course and you get no relief.

[Dave]

I've always had trouble with this rule.

Is there an easy way to know what's part of the course and what's an obstruction?

For example: a huge rock near the water? one of those wooden huts to hide from rain?

 

I always thought man-made is an obstruction and you get free relief. Natural obstructions (trees, bushes, rocks, etc) are part of the course and you get no relief.

 

 

Your close, man-made is nearly always an obstruction, unless is deemed to be a integral part of the course. Ie the man made rock walls made to hold dirt as mentioned in another post. That's part of the course.

[lowballhitter]

My vote is Out of Bounds, followed by Unplayable Ball, then any nearest point of relief situation. How many times do you hear "I'm just gonna drop it here" in any of the above scenarios?

[Glftips]

From another site... I didn't write this...

http://www.deeprough.com/index.php/2007/09/04/abused-golf-rules/

 

 

 

1. Giving advice on the course:

 

You cannot ask what club a fellow-competitor or opponent used, or tell anyone how to execute a swing. You can ask your partner what club she used.

 

You cannot ask how far it is from your ball (but you can ask what the yardage is from a permanent marker that is public knowledge

 

 

On number 1, You may ask the distance from your ball to the flag stick as this would be common knowledge. Rule 8-1 allows for this. Here is an explanation;

 

http://www.barryrhodes.com/2009/02/golf-rules-asking-for-and-giving-advice.html

[reg]

I think provisional's should be compulsory for any shot that is maybe in OB or an area that's common to lose a ball. It's just ridiculous to walk back 250y and play another ball when the group behind are waiting on the tee.

[Dave]

I think provisional's should be compulsory for any shot that is maybe in OB or an area that's common to lose a ball. It's just ridiculous to walk back 250y and play another ball when the group behind are waiting on the tee.

 

It shouldn't need to be compulsory, It's just common sense, and if you don't hit one, find you ball is lost or OB, without hitting a provisional, you should just be made to take a 10 on the hole. Move on people.

[BIG STU]

While I agree that playing by the rules is important, going back to the tee to hit a lost tee ball would kill pace of play. My uncle used to do this...now no one will golf with him. If you're trying to keep a really good handicap or you play competitively, I think following the rule book very strictly is nice, but for most of us, as long as everyone plays according to the same "casual" rules, the whole group can be happy.

That is basically what most of these guys that play down here do most of them are retired and dont post scores for handicap purposes etc just play their little informal golf leagues.

Down here this being a resort area etc and to speed up play a lot of courses will mark some wooded areas as lateral hazards and have drop areas over the hazard especially on par 3 holes

I do try to play by the rules to post my handicap etc because I want to establish a legal handicap to try to qualify for the Senior Open this year.