2008 #18 Niners’ Water Holes

THE SCENE:
You are playing #7, a par-three hole, over a water hazard. You club tops your ball and sends it bouncing towards the green. But it stops short of the water. You walk to your ball and hit it again. This time it splashes into the water hazard. With a penalty stroke for the water hazard you are now lying 3.

What Would You do?

A)  You would climb back in your cart, drive to the green and play from the Niners’ ball drop, lying 5, hitting 6.

B)  You lie only 3. You could be on in 4 so you hit another ball. If that ball goes into the water, too, you would add a penalty stroke to your score and cross over. You would be lying 6, hitting 7. 


(You hit your ball 3 times = 3 strokes; 
 

         2 balls in the water = 2 penalty strokes; 
 

                  To cross over = 1 penalty stroke.
                             Total = 6 (lying 6, hitting 7)
Both A & B are correct

To speed up play, the Niners have a special non-tournament rule for water holes:

If you have not gotten across the water after two tries, drop a ball on the other side, lying 5, hitting 6. (2 shots plus penalty strokes, plus one for the carry over the water.)

This means that if you are not across the water hazard after hitting the ball two times (whether the ball went into the water or not), you can cross to the green side of the hazard and play from the Niners’ ball drop, lying 5, hitting 6.
So, A) is correct.

However, you don’t have to cross over then. If your ball didn’t go into the water, your score is still low. You may want to hit again. If you do hit another ball, and if you still are not across the water, you can count all of your strokes, add a penalty stroke and cross over.
So, B) is also correct.

No matter how few times you hit the ball, if you cross over using this rule, your minimum score always would be lying 5, hitting 6..

REMEMBER: If, after 2 tries. you have not gotten across the water, take advantage of this special rule to speed up play. Cross over and drop a ball. You will be lying 5, hitting 6.

2008 #17 Can You Re-tee Your Ball?

The Scene:
On hole #11 you hit your drive. But you top the ball and it merely rolls off the tee and out of the teeing ground into some rough. The rough is on the side of the teeing ground and it is a steep hill. You can’t take your stance to hit the ball. You deem the ball unplayable and decide to take a penalty stroke and hit from where you hit before, in other words to hit from the teeing ground again.

What would you do?

A. Lift your ball and place it on a tee in the teeing ground. Then hit your drive again.
B.  Drop your ball on the teeing ground. Then re-hit your ball.


A is correct.
You are allowed to re-tee your ball. See the rule below:

20-5. Making Next Stroke from Where Previous Stroke Made
When a player elects or is required to make his next stroke from where a previous stroke was made, he must proceed as follows:
a. On the Teeing Ground: The ball to be played must be played from within the teeing ground. It may be played from anywhere within the teeing ground and may be teed.

 REMEMBER: If you decide to play from where you played before and that place is the teeing ground, you are allowed to re-tee your ball.

2008 #16 Things Your Ball Should Not Hit

In Rules Tip #9 you learned that you would be penalized if your ball hit your partner’s equipment. One of our members asked what other things your ball should not hit. So, I made the following list:

You would incur a 2-STROKE PENALTY in stroke play and a LOSS OF HOLE PENALTY in match play in all of the following scenarios.

   If your ball, from on the putting green,
       struck the flag, in the hole, unattended.

   If your ball:
       struck the person attending 

            or holding up the flagstick

          or anything carried by her

   If your ball:
       struck the flag
           when attended or
           when removed (lying on the ground) or
           when held up

You would incur a 1-STROKE PENALTY in both stroke play and match play in the following scenario:

   If your ball
       struck you, your partner, 

            either of your caddies 

         or equipment.

You would incur a 2-STROKE PENALTY in stroke play in the following scenario.

   If your ball,
       putted from on the green, struck another 

            ball lying on the green.

  (Stroke play only. No penalty at all in match play)

That is a lot for you to remember. But basically it concerns only 3 things:
the flag, putting and a partner.

All of this can be found in Rules #17 and #19.

2008 #15 Can Partner Replace Ball?

THE SCENE:
You are playing 4-ball (best ball of the twosome) on hole #1 of the Charger. Mary sliced her drive into the bunker on the right. You slice your drive, too, but as you hold your breath it lands short of the bunker. As you drive up to it you see that it is almost buried in deep rough. So, you pull out your Rescue club and swing. The rough grabs your club and the ball bounces into the bunker. But you can see it now and it is not your ball. You murmur an expletive. “I’m sorry,” you say as you pick up the ball. You know that you can’t replace it so you hold it out to the ball’s owner.

But she is taking a practice swing, so her partner takes the ball and says, “I’ll take care of it. I know where it was.” And she places the ball exactly where it was before you hit it. Then the ball’s owner takes her stance and hits it.

You can’t believe what you are seeing. You got penalized for this last week and you know the rule. You pull out your Rules of Golf book and show it to the ball’s owner. “You see, right there under rule 15-3 it says the owner must replace the ball. You are penalized one stroke.”

What should the owner do?
A.  She says, “It was my partner! She can always place or replace my ball.”
B.  The owner reads the rule and agrees to take a penalty of 1 stroke.

A is correct.

Look at the following decicion:

20-3a/0.5  Whether Player Himself Must Place or Replace Ball
Q.  Rule 20-3a states: “A ball to be placed under the Rules must be placed by the player or his partner. If a ball is to be replaced, the player, his partner or the person who lifted or moved it must place it on the spot from which it was lifted or moved.” On the other hand, other Rules, e.g., Rule 12-2, state that the player must place or replace the ball. Does Rule 20-3a override other Rules which imply that the player himself must place or replace the ball?



A. Yes



In other words, even when the rule specifically says that the player, herself, must place or replace the ball, it is still permisable for the player’s partner or the person who lifted the ball to do the replacing.



REMEMBER: If you must place or replace a ball, your partner can do it for you.

2008 #14 Who Should Replace a Wrong Ball?

THE SCENE:
You are playing hole #2 and two drives have landed in the deep rough on the right side of the fairway. You know where your ball landed so you drive to that spot, find a ball and hit it. Then you point to the other ball nearby and see that it is in fact your own ball. Oh, no! You have hit a wrong ball. A two stroke penalty! “I’m sorry,” you cry. "I hit your ball by mistake. But here, I know exactly where it was." You pull another ball out of your pocket and place it where her ball was.

The owner of the ball walks over, takes her stance and hits the ball. But then one of the other players challenges her. “You, the ball’s owner, have to place the ball. You can’t let her do it for you. That’s a 2 stroke penalty.”

What should the owner do?
A.  The owner knows the challenger is right so she takes a 2 stroke penalty.
B.  The owner knows the challenger is right but says the penalty is only 1 stroke.

B is correct.

Look at Rule #15
15-3 Wrong Ball
If the wrong ball belongs to another player, its owner must place a ball on the spot from which the wrong ball was first played.

And look at Rule 20-3

If the ball is placed or replaced by any other person and the error is not corrected as provided in Rule 20-6, the player incurs a penalty of one stroke.

This is new. In 2008 this rule was changed to reduce the penalty from 2 strokes to 1 stroke.

REMEMBER: If someone hits your ball by mistake, be sure that you, the ball’s owner, place a new ball on the spot from where it was hit.

2008 Rules Tip #13 Is Your Ball Lost?

THE SCENE:
You are playing a par three hole where part of the fairway is hidden by bushes. Your drive landed in that hidden area. The rough is deep and you can’t find your ball. But as you drove into the area you saw a dog which belongs to a neighbor and recently has been blamed for stealing balls. You think the dog took your ball. So, you drop another ball in the area where your ball landed. As you prepare to hit it, your fellow competitor says, “You don’t know for sure that the dog took your ball. It’s probably just lost.”

What Would You Do?
Ignore her and hit the ball.
Declare your ball lost. Take a one-stroke penalty, return to the tee and hit again.

B is correct.
In order to say that your ball was moved by the dog, you have to be virtually certain. You can’t just assume that it was so.

Look at Rule # 18

Rule 18 Ball at Rest Moved
18-1. By Outside Agency
If a ball at rest is moved by an outside agency, there is no penalty and the ball must be replaced.

Note: It is a question of fact whether a ball has been moved by an outside agency. In order to apply this Rule, it must be known or virtually certain that an outside agency has moved the ball. In the absence of such knowledge or certainty, the player must play the ball as it lies or, if the ball is not found, proceed under Rule 27-1.

This is new in 2008. If you can’t find your ball and you want to claim that your ball was moved by an outside agency, is in an obstruction (Rule 24-3), is in an abnormal ground condition (Rule 25-1c) or is in a water hazard (Rule 26-1), you have to be virtually certain that that is true. Otherwise your ball is lost.

REMEMBER: If you can’t find your ball and you don’t know where it is or how it was moved, it is a lost ball. Take a penalty stroke and hit from where you hit before.

2008 #12 When Should You Replace Your Ball?

THE SCENE:
You have hit your ball twice on #12, a long straight par-5 hole. A competitor hits her second shot. Everyone watches as the ball soars high into the air, then lands, on the fairway, rolls towards your ball then bumps it about 3 feet to the right. The competitor says, “Oh, I’m sorry. My ball hit yours. You will have to replace it.”

What would you do?
A. You play your ball as it lies. Only when your ball is moved on the green do you have to replace it.
B. You replace your ball. By doing so you avoid a 2-stroke penalty.

B is correct.
Look at Rule #18

#18 Ball at Rest Moved
18-5. By Another Ball
If a ball in play and at rest is moved by another ball in motion after a stroke, the moved ball must be replaced.

*Penalty for Breach of Rule:Match play - Loss of hole; Stroke play - Two strokes

When your ball is moved by another ball, you must replace it. And there are no exceptions. Whether your ball is lying on the green, the fairway or in a hazard, if it is moved by another ball you have to replace it. And if you fail to do so you will incur a 2-stroke penalty in stroke play or a loss of hole penalty in match play.

REMEMBER: If your ball is moved by another ball, replace it.

2008 #11 Can You Move the Flagstick?

THE SCENE:
Your 4-some is on the green of hole #10. Your partner putts. Her ball misses the hole then speeds up as it heads downhill towards the flagstick, which is lying on the ground and in the way. It’s going to hit. And that will be a two stroke penalty.

You rush over and lift the flagstick just in time. The ball rolls on by and then stops. Whew! But one of the other players shakes her finger at you and says, “That’s a two stroke penalty. You can’t lift the flag while the ball is moving!”

What would you do?
A. You know you are allowed to move the flag so you refuse to take a penalty.
B. You just got excited and acted without thinking. You apologize and take a 2-stroke penalty.

A is correct.
This is new in 2008. You are now allowed to move a flagstick lying on the ground to prevent a ball from hitting it.

Actually, there are two things you can move out of the way of a ball in motion. Equipment of the players and a flagstick whether you are ‘tending it, holding it up or have placed it on the ground.

Look in your Rules of Golf book at Rule #24
24-1. Movable Obstruction
When a ball is in motion, an obstruction that might influence the movement of the ball, other than equipment of any player or the flagstick when attended, removed or held up, must not be moved.
Penalty for Breach of Rule:Match play - Loss of hole; Stroke play - Two strokes.

REMEMBER: You are now allowed to move the flag if a ball might hit it.

2008 #10 Where Can You Stand?

THE SCENE:
Your drive lands on the front of the 7th green, rolls towards the flag and comes to rest just two feet from the hole. You putt for a birdie. Your ball rims the hole and curls out, stopping inches beyond the hole. You now have a tap-in. Two other balls have been marked beyond your ball.

What would you do?
A. Reach across the hole and tap the ball back towards you, between your feet?
B. Walk around the hole, avoid stepping on the other players’ lines by awkwardly placing your foot behind your own ball, and then tap it in?

Both A and B are correct.
Many players think A is illegal because Rule 16-1e says you can’t putt while standing astride the line of putt. Sam Snead used to putt this way, as if he were playing croquet, until the USGA outlawed it.

But A is legal. It is true that you can’t straddle the line of putt. But in your Rules of Golf book under Definitions it says:
‘The Line of Putt does not extend beyond the hole.’
In our scenario you are standing beyond the hole. So you are not standing astride the line of putt. Reaching across the hole and tapping the ball in towards you is OK.
And B is legal, too. The same rule, 16-1e, says:
‘The player shall not make a stroke on the putting green from a stance astride, or with either foot touching, the line of putt or an extension of that line behind the ball’.
In B you placed your foot behind your ball – that is on an extension of the line of putt behind the ball.

This is new: But Rule 16-1e goes on to say: There is no penalty if the stance is inadvertently taken on or astride the line of putt (or an extension of that line behind the ball) or is taken to avoid standing on another player’s line of putt or prospective line of putt.

In other words, if, because you are trying to avoid standing on the line of another player, you place your foot behind your own ball, that’s okay.

REMEMBER: When you have a tap in, don’t worry about where you place your feet. There is no penalty.

2008 #9 Ball Hits Partner’s Equipment

The Scene:
You are playing in a four-ball competition. (Better ball of the two-some) Your ball is in the bunker on hole #7. The flag is in the right back corner. You can’t see the green but you blast your ball out with enough force to land it on the top level of the green.

As you rake the sand in the bunker and climb out onto the green, you hear the other players arguing about penalty strokes. They explain that your ball landed where you wanted it to, but it kept going, all the way across the green and into the fringe where it hit one of your partner’s clubs.

What would you do?
A. Play your ball as it lies, with no penalty. You couldn’t see her club. It wasn’t on the green. There is no Rules infraction.
B. Play your ball as it lies but take a one stroke penalty for hitting your partner’s equipment.

B is correct
This is new because the penalty has been reduced to one stroke. Last year the penalty was two strokes in stroke play, and loss of hole in match play.

Rule 19-2 is very clear. If your ball, in motion, is stopped or deflected by you, your partner or equipment belonging to either of you, you incur a one stroke penalty. See below:

Rule 19 Ball in Motion Deflected or Stopped
19-2 By Player, Partner, Caddie or EquipmentIf a player’s ball is accidentally deflected or stopped by himself, his partner or either of their caddies or equipment, the player incurs a penalty of one stroke.

REMEMBER: When playing with a partner, don’t risk hitting her clubs. Make sure they are out of the way. But if you do, the penalty is now only one stroke.