Camel's nose under the tent?!

[GCSAA Supt]

Just looked over the USGA website and their summary of the new rules.  It will now allow a local rule to have a player drop with a two stroke penalty near where he either lost a ball or hit it OB and play from there rather than going back to the tee and re-hitting.   It will be a local rule but for championship competitions the old stroke and distance penalty will still be in effect.

 

Is this a first step to bifurcation of the rules?  And is that a bad thing?  Are the Blue Blazers over-reacting about distance and equipment issues based on the 1\2 of 1 percent that play the game at the championship/PGA tour level.  The average male player hits his drives 200 yds....a 20% reduction in the ball puts him at 160?!

 

I'm snowed in here in Massachusetts and have too much time on my hands!!

 

Jim, the retired GC Super

[null]

No different than being able to use certain distance devices sometimes and not others.

[revkev]

No different than being able to use certain distance devices sometimes and not others.

Agreed

 

But I will proclaim from the mountain tops that if the ball is rolled back I will never play competitive golf again as I will be done trying to play by the rules. I already would be if I were an anchored putter guy.

 

There is nearly a complete disconnect between the USGA and the overwhelming majority of the golfing population. I will say that this suggested local rule is a step back towards reality.

 

 

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[GolfJunkie302]

I don't like the thought of this rule. I don't like playing by a different set of rules than the pros. What if you shot a really good number but you were playing by "amateur rules?" It probably wouldn't feel to great — it wouldn't feel legit. Of course, you could opt to play by the real rules, but how would that affect your typical weekend game if the others in your group play by other rules? Or what affect would it have on your HI? I don't know... I'm not a fan of this decision.

 

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[cnosil]

I think you are overreacting to this rule. The intent for amateurs is to speed up play by not having to go back and hit for your previous spot if you discover that the ball is OB. You can do the stroke and distance if you want.

 

Essentially you are taking the OB penalty you are just saying you ended up in that spot after you did stroke and distance. I actually play in a league that has followed this approach for a while.

[MattF]

Most amateurs do this anyway, I know I do and others that I've played with.

[Kor.A.Door]

If we think a ball is OB we always just hit provisional to save time. We aren't playing for big bucks on Saturdays so we play pretty relaxed anyway. In the club championships and such we play it by the “rules” to protect the field, but we play everything as red stake except for the backyards of the houses. In which case we just re-tee if we think it went into a yard, you have to miss really bad to hit one in a yard.

[Bosox04]

If we think a ball is OB we always just hit provisional to save time. We aren't playing for big bucks on Saturdays so we play pretty relaxed anyway. In the club championships and such we play it by the “rules” to protect the field, but we play everything as red stake except for the backyards of the houses. In which case we just re-tee if we think it went into a yard, you have to miss really bad to hit one in a yard.

This is how we play. Nobody goes back to the tee.

[TSauer]

We play exactly Kor.A.Door does. If we hit an errant tee shot and we have a good idea it's out, just tee up another one.

[PlaidJacket]

I don't think it matters one way or another to me. The guys I play 90% of my golf with play by our rules. Our rules say if you hit one OB and you're pretty sure it either is OB or very close. Hit another ball w/penalty. Other times if you get to where your ball should be but find it's OB or lost... take the penalty strokes; drop one and keep it moving. We don't make anyone go back to the tee or where the ball was last struck. It'd be ridiculous. And besides all that.... we're almost always gambling; so if a guy has misfortune like above then he's probably going to be out of the hole and lose a bet anyway.

I'm about done with tournament golf but when I do play then it's strictly by the rules. As it should be.

Is my handicap totally legit as played and defined by the strict rules of golf. Nope. Is yours?

[HardcoreLooper]

I'm in favor of the suggested local rule. If I'm playing a course I know well, I have a pretty good idea of what kind of shot is going OB (or will be lost) and what's not. When I hit one of those shots, I'll play a provisional. I don't want to deflate my handicap.

 

But this rule is great for resort courses that you don't know very well. Especially blind shots. As others have posted above, you're not going all the way back to the tee in that situation.