Category: Rules of Golf

Ladies:
You might think I’m stuck on the putting green again this month but, I start there and move on to other bad practices on the course.
They don’t break the Rules of Golf but aren’t a good idea.

Hope this helps you,
Hilary

We often see our ladies clean mud from their golf ball, by rubbing it on the putting green surface beside their ball-marker, I started to think of other bad practices that we often see on our golf course, which do not incur a penalty, but should definitely be discouraged. Here are a few.

• Cleaning a ball by rubbing it on the putting green. This is permitted (Decision 16-1d/5), providing the act is not for the purpose of testing the surface of the putting green. However, it is recommended that a ball be cleaned in other ways to eliminate any question as to the player’s intentions.
• Using a putter head, a tee or a loose impediment to mark a ball on the putting green (Decision 20-1/16). Players should always use a coin, ball-marker or other similar object for this purpose.
• Placing a club, usually a putter, in front of a ball when addressing it.(I addressed this last month) Even though this unusual pre-shot routine means that the player is touching their line of putt on the putting green, it does not incur a penalty. Rule 16-1(ii) specifically permits this action, providing the player does not press anything down. If they do press their club down on the ground as they address their ball they incur a penalty under Rule 13-2.
• Standing behind a fellow competitor while he makes his stroke. Again this action does not breach any Rule, but it is extremely poor etiquette. Players should never stand close to or directly behind the line of play, or directly behind the hole, when a fellow competitor or opponent is about to play.
• Not entering the player’s score on the score card after each hole when acting as their marker. Some markers only update the card every 3rd/4th hole, or even wait until the end of a round. There is no penalty for this, but the Rules say that the marker should check the score with the competitor and record it at the end of each hole (Rule 6-6a).

Lastly, not putting recognisable identification marks on your ball. Time and again players find that they are not able to positively identify their ball in play. Rule 12-2 states that each player should put an identification mark on his ball.

These bad practices on the golf course can annoy us all. Try to avoid them so we can all enjoy our rounds of golf.

Hope this helps you,Hilary.

Hi Ladies

Attached is an announcement from USGA regarding proposed new rule, effective January 2016, regarding anchoring clubs (belly putters, etc.).

The proposed Rule 14-1b would prohibit strokes made with the club or a hand gripping the club intentionally held directly against the player’s body, or with a forearm intentionally held against the body to establish an anchor point that indirectly anchors the club.

I don’t think any of us use one but is good info to know.
Hilary

Click Here for the attachment.

Dog Takes Paul Casey’s Ball An amusing Rules incident occurred at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship last Friday. Paul Casey was eyeing-up an eagle putt on the par-5, 12th green at Kingsbarns Golf Links in St. Andrews when a dog picked-up his ball from the putting green and ran off with it. As you can see from the photo, Casey tried to persuade the dog to drop his ball, presumably nearer to the hole, but it ran off gripping it with its teeth. A sprightly spectator caught the ball thief on the 13th and retrieved Casey’s original ball, which he correctly replaced on the green where it had been at rest and took his putt. This was a simple application of Rule 18-1, which states;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.