Category: Rules of Golf

Marking your ball quiz

Suzy’s and Mary’s balls lay in the fairway a few feet apart. Mary is away and before she makes her next stroke she asks Suzy to mark her ball as she thinks it might interfere with her play. Suzy marks her ball and lifts it.

Suzy incurs?

A two stroke penalty

A one stroke penalty

No penalty.

Same situation:

This time before Mary makes her stroke, Suzy asks Mary if she would like her to mark her ball and lift it. Mary says, “Yes I would, please do.” Suzy marks and lifts her ball.

Suzy incurs?

A two stroke penalty

A one stroke penalty

No penalty

Same situation:

Suzy sees her ball close to Mary’s and believes her ball is in Mary’s way and without asking Mary she marks it and lifts it.

Suzy incurs?

A two stroke penalty

A one stroke penalty

No penalty.

Well Suzy has been a busy gal marking and lifting all those balls, what were your answers?

First scenario: No penalty

Second scenario: No penalty

Third scenario: Sadly, nice “forward thinking” Suzy is penalized one stroke for lifting her ball without being asked. (Rule 18-2a)

Here’s the Rule that covers all this asking, lifting, and marking!

Rule 22-2. Except when a ball is in motion, if a player considers that another ball might interfere with their play, he may have it lifted. (A player may request a ball to be lifted if the ball interferes either physically or mentally with their play)

A ball lifted under this Rule must be replaced and must not be cleaned unless it is on the putting green.

NOTE 1: Except on the putting green a player may not lift their ball solely because he considers it might interfere with the play of another player. If he lifts his ball without being asked to do so he incurs a one stroke penalty.

The moral of this part of the story is, be courteous but wait to be ASKED!

One more for you………

Same time, same place Mary asks Suzy to lift her ball again! Suzy is so very tired of bending over and doing all this marking for Mary that she tells her, as nicely as she can, that she will play her ball first rather than marking it.

Suzy incurs?

A two stroke penalty

A one stroke penalty

No penalty

Actually kind, and very tired, Suzy gets no penalty.

Rule 22-2 also states that: In stroke play, a player required to lift his ball may play first rather than lift the ball.

Good news for some of us as these days bending over is getting harder and harder!

I hope this helps you.

Hilary

So no ladies play day eh? So whatcha gonna do? Read Rules of course!

Ladies:

Discovery Bay Country Club has 16 of its 18 holes where water can come into play, ouch! Many of our seasoned members know exactly how to follow the Rules of Golf when their ball goes into the water, but our newer members may not. What I want to do today is to go over three difficult areas on our course where you may be unsure of what to do, and try to make it as easy as possible for you to understand what you do next, apart from using bad words.

Every time your ball goes into the water the very FIRST thing you should do, and most importantly is,

Identify the place where your ball last crossed the margin of the hazard as accurately as you can, or estimate that point as honestly as you can. Sometimes at long distances the “exact” point is hard to establish. Be realistic and honest. This is your reference point for Rule 26.

Secondly. Identify what color the stakes are in the area where your ball took its nosedive into the water hazard.

Yellow stakes or yellow lines: A water hazard. Three options

Red stakes or red lines: A lateral water hazard. Five options

A lateral hazard is different from a water hazard by the fact that it is, well, lateral ! It runs alongside or adjacent to the line of play, rather than across it, and it is difficult to drop a ball behind.

Ladies please don’t get worried over all the “options”, it’s simpler than it sounds and I have included a link at the bottom of the page with an extremely informative video from the USGA on Water Hazards. It will be worth your while to check it out, and you won’t even get wet!

Here we go.

Difficult and often misunderstood scenario 1. Hole #2

You played your ball from the teeing ground and it went across the water and you were sure it was going onto the green but…..it landed on the grass bank in front of the green and bounced back into the water! Rats……………………….Now what?

Identify the point where your ball last crossed the hazard and went in

What color are the stakes? Yellow

Here on hole #2 it makes no difference that your ball touched land first. Your ball crossed the margin of the hazard at the yellow stakes and ended up in the water.

Options?

1. Play the ball as it lies, no penalty, you can’t swim or even see it, therefore not an option.

2. With your reference point of where the ball last crossed the hazard when it bounced back into the water go back as far as you like in line with the pin and drop a ball. You could possibly be up against the boundary fence, under a tree, or maybe on the men’s teeing ground. One penalty stroke

3. Play a ball from where you made your last stroke, the teeing ground.

Your smartest choice is playing a ball again from the teeing ground. Take a one stroke penalty and try again.

Difficult and often misunderstood scenario 2 Hole #11

You hit from the teeing ground, your ball sails across the water but hits the rocks lining the hazard alongside the cart path, and takes huge bounce backwards into the water. This time it did not touch land on the other side. Now what?

Identify where your ball last crossed the hazard.

No, no, not at the rocks where your ball hit them but at the rocks right in front of you

What color are the stakes? Red.

Options? Really only 4 of the 5** are possible at this place

1. Again no swimming ….so you can’t play it as it lies….

2. As the stakes are red you have the option of dropping a ball within two club lengths from where your ball last crossed the hazard. Okay it’s a possible choice, but watch out the grass can be long there! One penalty stroke.

3. As far back as you like in line with the pin. You might end up on the men’s tee box, and also it could be extremely difficult to estimate the line accurately. One penalty stroke.

4. Play a ball from where you made your last stroke, the teeing ground.

My choice? I’d take the teeing ground. Take a one stroke penalty, and try again.

Difficult and often misunderstood scenario 3 The dreaded hole #17.

This hole is tricky, nasty tricky.

Let’s use the scenario that you hit from the teeing ground, your ball lands on the green, it bounces to the right, and rolls over the pilings and plops into the water. Unlucky you!

You saw where your ball went in……………….. Great!

What color are the stakes? Yellow

Options?

1. Again, (are we tired of this yet?) no swimming to play the ball where it lies

2. Drop a ball in line with the pin as far back as you like, ….you are gonna be in the water, or on the 18th fairway. Neither a nice place.

3. So yes, you’ve got it………… Play a ball again from the teeing ground.

Take a one stroke penalty, and try again!

Now ladies, please check out this video link below

You can actually see how the options work, (**including the rarely used by us “opposite margin option” for a lateral water hazard) Our golf course it not set up in a way that we could use it to our advantage, so please don’t worry too much about this option.

Let’s keep playing here, and learning the Rules of Golf, as simply as possible.

Any questions? Just ask me or send me an e mail.

I hope this helps you,

Hilary