Weekly Rules of Golf
GCGA Rules Guru, Dave Arenz |
As a Tournament Volunteer, Dave has been a Forecaddie, Starter, Scorer, Marker, Observer, and Referee. Highlights of his career include being a Rules Official at the 2005 US Amateur Public Links Championship at Shaker Run and at the 2007 US Women’s Amateur Public Links Championship at Kearney Hill. He has also served as a Starter and Rules Official at the 2007-09 US Open Sectional Qualifiers. During 2009, Dave served as a Rules Official at 10 USGA Local and Sectional Qualifiers. He also worked 8 GCGA Championships, 5 collegiate events including the Big East Championship and the NCAA Div. I Women's Regional, and 4 OHSAA High School Sectional and District Qualifiers. | |
Ask A Rules Question
Here is your opportunity to ask a Rules of Golf question and get an answer from Dave. One question will be selected each week. Your question should be an actual situation encountered. For best results, include answers to these questions if possible:
- What is the form of play (e.g., match play or stroke play; single, foursome or four-ball?)
- Who is involved (e.g., the player, his partner or caddie, an outside agency?)
- Where the incident occurred (e.g., on the teeing ground, in a bunker or water hazard, on the putting green or elsewhere on the course?)
- The player’s intentions (e.g., what was he doing and what does he want to do?)
- Any subsequent events (e.g., the player has returned his score card or the competition has closed.)
How Would YOU Rule?
Here is an opportunity to demonstrate your knowledge of the Rules of Golf and win a prize. The GCGA will draw a winner from all correct entries. One entry per person or you will be DQ’d!
The Rules Quiz has gone into hibernation for the winter season.
See you in the spring of 2010.
Rules In Action
A Rules situation and ruling taken from an on-course ruling at a GCGA tournament:
During the 2009 OHSAA District Tournaments at Weatherwax, two high school players learned painful lessons about the Rules of Golf.
Situation #1: The player hit his tee ball on the 5th hole of Woodside (his 14th hole) into the trees. Expecting to find his ball, he did not play a Provisional Ball. After searching for his original ball for the allowable time, he walked back on his "line of flight" about half the distance to the tee (about 100 yards). There he dropped a ball and played out the hole. He then continued on to the 6th hole and played it.
At that point, a spectator approached me (Rules Official) on the 6th hole and asked if the player had played correctly. What would be your ruling?
I realized that since the player had already teed off on the 6th hole, nothing could be done to rectify the error on the 5th hole. I waited until the competitor completed his round and then interviewed the player and his fellow-competitors. Finding that the facts reported by the spectator were correct, I had no choice but to apply the Rules of Golf. The ruling: Disqualification.
Rule 27-1c, Ball Lost or Out of Bounds; Provisional Ball. Ball Not Found Within Five Minutes is very clear:
“If a ball is lost as a result of not being found or identified as his by the player within five minutes after the player's side or his or their caddies have begun to search for it, the player must play a ball, under penalty of one stroke, as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was last played."
In this case, the player did not play another ball "as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was last played." He went only half the distance back to the tee. Thus, he played from a Wrong Place. Playing fom Wrong Place (Rule 20-7c) in stroke play states:
“If a competitor makes a stroke from a wrong place, he incurs a penalty of two strokes under the applicable Rule. He must play out the hole with the ball played from the wrong place, without correcting his error, provided he has not committed a serious breach (see Note 1).
"If a competitor becomes aware that he has played from a wrong place and believes that he may have committed a serious breach, he must, before making a stroke on the next teeing ground, play out the hole with a second ball played in accordance with the Rules.
"... If the competitor has committed a serious breach and has failed to correct it as outlined above, he is disqualified."
Note 1 explains what constitutes a serious breach:
"Note 1: A competitor is deemed to have committed a serious breach of the applicable Rule if the Committee considers he has gained a significant advantaqe as a result of playing from a wrong place."
In this case the player did not go all the way back to the tee as Rule 27 required. By dropping a ball on his "line of flight" he went only part of the way back to the tee (100 yards instead of 200 yards). That is a serious breach (he gained 100 yards). There is NO SUCH THING AS "LINE OF FLIGHT" IN THE RULES OF GOLF!
Situation #2: The player hit his tee ball on the 9th hole of Woodside (his 18th hole) into the high grass on the left. Expecting to find his ball, he did not play a Provisional Ball. The player started forward to search for his ball. After walking a distance toward the area he realized that he should have played a Provisional Ball. The player returned to the tee, announced that his next ball would be a "Provisional" and hit it into the same area as his first ball. Realizing that his second ball could also be lost, he announced that he would play another Provisional and... played it into the same area as the first and second balls. Believing that one of the balls would be found, he again went forward to search.
At that point, luck was with him. All three balls were found.
The player then picked up his second and third balls and played the original ball into the hole. He then walked off the green (his last) and reviewed his scorecard with his coach. Before the player (and coach) turned in the scorecard they decided to check that the player had entered the correct score on the last hole. They asked a Rules Official to confirm the player's score. What would be your ruling?
At that point, luck, or more correctly, the Rules of Golf were not with him. He was Disqualified. Why? Rule 27-2a Provisional Ball, Procedure states:
“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."
Thus, his original ball which he played into the hole was a wrong ball. His second ball which he thought was a Provisional was actually his ball in play. When he walked off his last green without announcing that he was going to correct his error (wrong ball) he, in effect, had no score for the last hole. He was Disqualified.
The Rules of Golf are clear: Announce and play your Provisional(s) before going forward to search. Otherwise, any subsequent ball you put into play from the spot at which the previous ball was played become your ball in play with the stroke and distance penalty!
Last Week's Question
The Question and Answer selected from last week was:
Q. From Criss:
I have a question about a player's options in the following circumstance: At Stonelick Hills, hole 3 is a par 3 over water. From the near side, there are yellow stakes. From the far side (green side), there are red stakes. There is a drop area.
My question is: if a player were to hit a shot that crossed the red stakes on the far side, but then went into the water, does the player have an option to BOTH play two clubs from where the ball went in the hazard or play from the drop area, OR does the player NOT have the option of the drop area because their ball went into the hazard after crossing the red stake; meaning they would either have to re-tee or play two clubs from where the ball crossed into the hazard?
I had this ruling come up in a recent round and I wasn't sure which was the correct option. Obviously, if the player does not fly the ball to cross the red stakes, they can select the drop area for the next shot.
Thanks for any guidance you can give!
A. Criss,
Thanks for your question. Unfortunately, I can not give you a definitive answer. The answer depends on what the Committee stated as the reason for the Ball Drop. If this happened during a competition such as league play, it would be the Committee for the league that would make the determination. If it happened during normal "open" play, then it would be the decision of the Stonelick Hills course Committee.
In either case, the Committee determines if the Ball Drop is used exclusively for the Water Hazard (yellow stakes) or includes the Lateral Water Hazard (red stakes). Typically, Ball Drops are used for Water Hazards (yellow stakes); but, the Committee MAY specify a Ball Drop for use as an additional option for a Lateral Water Hazard (red stakes).
Since your ball last crossed the margin of the hazard in the Lateral Water Hazard, you have the usual Lateral Water Hazard options including the two club length from the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard and the point on the opposite margin of the hazard equidistant to where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard.
Net, it could be okay to use the Ball Drop IF the Committee stated that it was an option for both the Water Hazard and the Lateral Water Hazard. If the Committee stated that it was an option for ONLY the Water Hazard, then you could not use the Ball Drop for the Lateral Water Hazard.
Sorry to have to pass the buck; but, the Rules of Golf state that it is the Committee's decision to add Ball Drops if necessary and to define any criteria on their use.
Last Month's Quiz Answer
Answer to last month’s Quiz:
Q: During match play in the 2009 Tony Blom Metropolitan Amateur Championship, Bill’s second shot on the par 4 twelfth hole at the Heritage Club went into the lateral water hazard to the right of the green. Bill dropped a new ball slightly more than one club-length from the spot where the original ball entered the hazard but not nearer the hole. Because the lateral water hazard is very close to the green, Bill’s dropped ball first struck the course on the putting green before rolling a very short distance onto the fringe. Bill took two additional strokes to complete the hole. What was Bill’s score for the hole?
A: The correct answer is “b”. Bill incurs a one-stroke penalty for his ball in the water hazard. He dropped his ball correctly (YES, in these circumstances he may drop on the putting green). The fact that the ball rolled OFF of the putting green is not a problem… only when a dropped ball rolls ON to the putting green must it be redropped. Adding the one penalty stroke to the four actual strokes and you get the correct answer: five.