Scramble Rules Controversy

[LICC]

Have people here seen this? In a scramble, does the first score in have to be the team’s score on a hole? It doesn’t seem to make sense to me. Each player is playing his own shot through the hole so shouldn’t  both players finish out and be entitled to the better score?

 

https://www.golfmonthly.com/news/who-was-right-viral-barstool-sports-clip-throws-up-scramble-rule-debate

Edited September 23, 2023 by LICC

[Josh Parker]

If it was truly a tap in putt, then typically in a scramble the other group says its good and the remaining player still has his/her putt.  I haven't ever had an instance where the tap in counted as the score if players still had an opportunity to putt.  I can see the other side if the putt isn't a give-me putt and then the player putts prior to his team putting. 

All sounds pretty silly if I'm being honest.   

[DaveP043]

The Rules of Golf don't consider scrambles, this MUST be defined in the competitions rules.  I've definitely played in scrambles where we were warned not to tap in a putt until all players had played the original putt, that if we did so the hole was over, no opportunity to improve on the score made with the holed ball.  The flip side, a player could try a 6 foot come-backer to attempt to give his partner a free run at the initial putt, rather than a cautious lag.  Its up to the organizers to decide, before it becomes an issue.

[RickyBobby_PR]

2 hours ago, DaveP043 said:

The Rules of Golf don't consider scrambles, this MUST be defined in the competitions rules.  I've definitely played in scrambles where we were warned not to tap in a putt until all players had played the original putt, that if we did so the hole was over, no opportunity to improve on the score made with the holed ball.  The flip side, a player could try a 6 foot come-backer to attempt to give his partner a free run at the initial putt, rather than a cautious lag.  Its up to the organizers to decide, before it becomes an issue.

Every scramble I played in the first putt in the hole is the score. We’ve always been told to mark a putt that didn’t go in to avoid that becoming the teams score.

 

[JimMLINY]

Just played in a scramble. 

All had to play ball to hole. 

Once a putt was dropped everyone else was supposed picked up and the best score was recorded. 

Noone picked up so all four scores were recorded with best score reported for tournament results.

30 foursomes and the round was 4 hours so not as long as I thought by a fair amount of time.

We had 1 PM start.

8 AM start was with 20 foursomes to make sure all were off by afternoon start.

[DaveP043]

1 hour ago, RickyBobby_PR said:

Every scramble I played in the first putt in the hole is the score. We’ve always been told to mark a putt that didn’t go in to avoid that becoming the teams score.

 

Thats been my experience once too, but it really must be specified in the rules for the competition.  Most scrambles I've played in have been charity things, with minimal prizes, so I would never make a big deal of it, but if the stakes are higher, even the most honest players will want to take advantage of the rules if allowed.  A consistent thing with golf rules, if the rules don't say you may not do something, then you may do it.  

[LICC]

5 hours ago, DaveP043 said:

The flip side, a player could try a 6 foot come-backer to attempt to give his partner a free run at the initial putt, rather than a cautious lag. 

My question is- what is wrong with that? It seems like a good strategic option for team golf. Is there a principle of golf that this contradicts?

[DaveP043]

51 minutes ago, LICC said:

My question is- what is wrong with that? It seems like a good strategic option for team golf. Is there a principle of golf that this contradicts?

Not at all,  but it must be defined before play starts, so everyone knows the rules, and can choose the appropriate strategy.

[Stuka44]

On 9/23/2023 at 11:18 AM, jdparker said:

All sounds pretty silly if I'm being honest. 

 

On 9/23/2023 at 5:41 PM, DaveP043 said:

the rules, and can choose the appropriate strategy.

 

On 9/23/2023 at 4:48 PM, LICC said:

My question is- what is wrong with that?

I agree, and partially disagree, with all of you in part.   Mostly I agree that is sounds really silly!  IMO this is another example of someone who is taking the rules of the game,(or in this case the non-rules of the scramble) FAR  too seriously.  Again maybe they were playing for $1000 a guy, and the grand prize was 100K in a 100 man event, who knows, didn't seem like it.  I see it as each person is entitled to play  from the spot.  Now again I believe the gentleman who went ahead with the tap-in, was doing what more people who play this game in any format should do, caveat!(Unless you are playing in a USGA sanctioned event).  That is think ahead, and think SAVE TIME.  Let's all play this game as EFFICIENTLY AS POSSIBLE. To me common sense in this scramble format says, we're playing our putts at the same time, to speed things up!!!!.  Tap in guy is saving time by going ahead and securing at worst (their 5).  It seemed like a two man scramble, so if his partner doesn't make the putt for 4, they have their 5, and can CLEAR THE GREEN, without a second more of delay.  This saves time of someone then having to place their ball back down to tap in a 6 inch putt, which the partner would be entitled to take his shot at should the 6 inch tap in fail initially.   It seems to me that the person who indicated that the complainer was missing the "spirit of the game" was 1000 % correct.

I have to be honest, had it been me, whoever the A-hole was complaining, I would have informed him that that  I feel very sorry for him.  Further that there is probably a medication which could help him, with his "over-zealousness"  regarding the "Non-Rules" of a scramble, which is almost exclusively used in a  "friendly type" event? And that if it meant that much too him, again "I feel sorry for you",  I want no part of it, congratulations!, we quit, I wish you cared as much about homelessness,  global warming, or deforestation of the rain forests, but alas no.  Off I walk.

Edited September 26, 2023 by Stuka44

[GaDawg]

Rule # 1 - There are no rules in a scramble.

Just kidding

[cardia10]

The best scramble rule is the 2 putt max. That cures all that what ball went in first nonsense. You are playing a format completely against the rules yet want to get picky about one rule on the green? Come on....

[Shifty]

You should never finish a hole before all others on your team are done putting in a scramble..  What happens if you miss and another shot is selected for your team?  Do you get another shot?  Not really fair.  Also the next putter has zero pressure on him if he knows he doesn't need to put it close. 

That being said, its a D%^k move calling it out.   I see this happen often, and just let it slide.  I'm there to have fun, not argue.  I'm past that point in my life (used to love to argue, lol).

If its a really big deal, it should be mentioned before the scramble starts imo.

Edited March 26 by Shifty

[proffire]

Recently played in a "money" scramble that has changed its rule on this. Originally it listed in the rules that first in counted so you had to mark every putt.  They changed the rule a couple years ago to speed up play that allowed tap ins but the following players still could putt. As others have stated the key is it needs to be in the written rules so everyone is on the same page.

[gophergutz]