MARSHAL, KNOW YOUR RULES...
THE
Q. RECENTLY IN A MATCH I REQUESTED
THAT MY COMPETITOR LIFT HIS BALL
AS IT WAS ON MY LINE OF PLAY. HE
REFUSED TO DO SO AND STATED
THAT IF I HIT HIS BALL I WOULD LOSE
THE HOLE WHAT IS THE RULING?
A. our opponent is completely wrong. For
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not moving his ball he loses the hole for
failing to comply with your request.
Q. RECENTLY LUCKY AND I HIT THE
GREEN IN TWO ON A PAR 4 BUT MY
PLAYING PARTNER LANDED IN THE
BUNKER FURTHER AWAY. HE TOOK
HIS NEXT SHOT AND SPRAYED SAND
EVERYWHERE INCLUDING THE LINE OF
MY PUTT. I THEN BRUSHED THE SAND
AWAY AND HE CALLED A 1 STROKE
PENALTY ON ME. WAS THAT CORRECT.
A. o. Sand is a moveable object. It may
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be removed by any means (brushing
or picking) as long as the surface is not
altered.
Q. I KNOW YOU AREN’T ALLOWED TO
RECONFIGURE DJUSTABLE CLUBS
IN PLAY BUT RECENTLY DURING A
ROUND A WEIGHT IN MY NEW DRIVER
BECAME LOOSE, I TIGHTENED IT AND
CONTINUED AS NORMAL WITHOUT
A PENALTY, WAS THIS CORRECT? OR
MUST YOU LIVE WITH THE RATTLE
UNTIL THE ROUND IS FINISHED?
A. es, the Rules of Golf do permit you to
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tighten a weight mid-round, assuming the
weight was loosened during the “normal
course of play”—i.e., not as a result of
tampering.
Rule 4-3a gives you three options: (1)
Keep using the club as is; (2) Fix it,
assuming you can do so quickly; or (3)
Replace it, assuming the club can’t be
played or fixed
Q. I HOPE IM NOT THE ONLY ONE BUT
RECENTLY I HIT A CHIP SHOT AND
DOUBLE HIT THE BALL, AS IT WAS ALL
IN ONE STROKE IS THERE A PENALTY?
A. “If a player’s club strikes the ball more
than once in the course of a stroke, the
player shall count the stroke and add a
penalty stroke, making two strokes in
total.
The rules do not state that you have to
add a stroke for every time you struck the
ball, even if it was 3-4 times it is only a 1
stroke penalty.
Q. I WAS PLAYING IN A TEAM MATCH
AND I ATTEMPTED TO PLAY A FLOP
SHOT ON TO THE GREEN, I INSTEAD
SHANKED THE BALL AND HIT MY
PARTNER, THE BALL THEN ROLLED
BACK TOWARDS THE HOLE STOPPING
A COUPLE OF INCHES FROM THE
HOLE. NOTHING WAS SAID AS WE
WERE TOO BUSY LAUGHING BUT
SHOULD A PENALTY HAVE BEEN
CALLED?
A. In individual stroke play, there is no
penalty on either player and the ball shall
be played as it lies. As the player the ball
struck was an opponent.
a team competition situation like yours
In
where the person hit was a “partner,” you
will incur a penalty of two (2) strokes in
stroke play or lose the hole in match play.
Q. I WAS RECENTLY PLAYING IN A
MEDAL, I WAS ON THE GREEN ABOUT
6FT FROM THE HOLE WHEN MY
OPPONENT HOLED OUT, AS HE BENT
DOWN TO PICK HIS BALL UP HE LEFT
A LOAD OF SPIKE MARKS ON MY
LINE. I WENT ACROSS AND PATTED
THEM OUT WITH MY PUTTER AND
THEN HE CALLED A PENALTY ON ME.
IS IT RIGHT THAT I RECEIVE A PENALTY
BECAUSE HE WAS CARELESS?
A. Unfortunately he is correct, you can repair
pitch marks but you cannot flatten out the
ground on which you are putting, even if
you opponent has just stamped all over
your line. You should receive (however
ever unfair it is ) a 2 stroke penalty or in
match play you lose the hole.
ISSUE 02 | YOURCADDY
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