Category: Rules of Golf

Hi Ladies:

It’s hard to believe our 18 holers’ golfing season is winding down. Time flies when you’re having fun.

This year we started our quizzes by covering “Nearest point of relief”, how to do it and when. Like at the staked tree on hole #1 or the cart path on hole #9.

We then learned not to carry a paper cup for our Kahlua in our golf cart as it could turn into an outside agency and move our ball.

Pesky ducks on hole #7 taught us how to deal with “Moving outside agencies” that think our ball is their egg.

Then last month those determined little insects on our ball showed us when to squish ‘em and when to leave them alone.

Let’s have a our last trip trip around our course for this year and see what trouble we can find.

1. Here we are on hole #8 and our ball is lying on the fringe of the putting green. It’s kinda narrow there and your fellow competitor’s ball is 10 yards behind you and they are getting ready to chip on to the green.
You kindly say, “Let me get my ball out of your way.” You go and mark your ball correctly and then pick it up.

Have you broken any Rule?

Yes you have. You have just broken rule 22-2.

You MAY lift your ball if you think it’s going to ASSIST another player but not if you think if would interfere. However your competitor CAN have your ball lifted if they think it will interfere with their next stroke.

Next time wait ‘til your competitor asks YOU to lift it. It’s hard to believe this but being nice can sometimes be a bad idea.

2. Peggy Sue’s ball lies near to, but to the side of your ball, in the fairway. It’s her turn to play and she asks you to lift your ball just because it catches her eye giving mental interference. What is the ruling?
A. It’s your choice, lift it or leave it

B. If you lift your ball you’ll get a penalty under rule 22-2 as in question #1

C. You must lift your ball.

D. You tell Peggy Sue to “suck it up” and quit whining

ANSWER: C. Decision 22/1 says that a player is entitled to have a ball lifted if it interferes mentally or physically with their play. If you refuse to lift your ball you will be disqualified, Rule 3-4

Let’s keep with this mental stuff and try this one.

3. You are on the fairway of hole #10. You get ready to hit your ball but a sprinkler head is between your feet and the ball.

A. You can move your ball/get free relief due to mental interference

B. You have to play it where it is and suck it up.

ANSWER: B. Unlike Peggy Sue, you must "suck it up" if the sprinkler head does not interfere with the lie of your ball, your stance, or area of swing.

4. Hole #17. Your tee shot just gets over the water, whew your lucky day. It lands on the grass and slowly rolls into the bunker in front of the green. Because it’s a long bunker shot you fail to get out and your ball lands back in the bunker 10 feet in front of where is was . You rake the bunker and walk forward to try again. What is your penalty?
A. You get a two stroke penalty for raking/ testing the surface of the bunker.

B. No penalty.

C. $50 because you decide to get bunker lessons

D. A one stroke penalty

ANSWER: B and C. After playing you ball in the bunker you may smooth the sand provided nothing is done to breach Rule 13-2 with respect to your next stroke. As your ball lay some distance from your raking there is no penalty. As for the $50, maybe it would be money well spent!

That’s it Ladies for this season. I hope you enjoyed the quizzes and they helped you.

Hilary

Hi Ladies:

Let’s have some fun with “loose impediments” and see what we know, don’t know, and what we should do.

1. Our ball is on the fairway surrounded by little pieces of cut grass. We think, “Thank goodness they’ve finally mowed the rough!” We remove them from around the ball, and one piece that’s stuck on our ball. The ball does not move. Penalty or no penalty?

Answer. No penalty for removing the grass around the ball BUT a one stroke penalty for removing the grass adhering to the ball.

Decision 21/2 says that anything “adhering to the ball” is not a loose impediment. The grass is a loose impediment when it’s on the ground, not when it’s on your ball.

2. Your ball is on the fringe of the green and, before you make your next stroke, you remove some twigs, leaves, loose soil and sand from around your ball. The ball does not move. Penalty or no penalty?

Answer. It’s tricky.

No penalty for removing the twigs and leaves as they are "loose impediments."

But a TWO STROKE penalty for removing the loose soil and sand, because here they are not “loose impediments.” You have improved your lie, area of intended stance, swing or line of play. Rule 13-2.

3. Now you’re on the putting green, and you’re very angry because your “lying 3” became a 5. You mark your ball and, on your line of play, there’s some sand and loose soil. Can you remove them, or will it be another two stroke penalty?

Answer. Here on the putting green sand and loose soil ARE loose impediments so you can remove them. No penalty, Rule 16-1

Go figure who decided this, and what do they have against loose soil and sand eh?

Finally a very tricky one …….

Your ball lies on the fairway and a live insect is on your ball, can you remove it?

Yes, because unlike the grass in question #1, it is not considered to be adhering to your ball because it has legs and can walk and therefore is a “loose impediment”. BUT if your ball moves while removing the pesky critter you get a one stroke penalty and have to replace your ball.

The trickiness continues……

Same ball, same insect on your ball, but now in a bunker. Can you remove the insect?

NO. Even though he’s still a "loose impediment" he’s in the bunker and that is forbidden.

However, as he is capable of moving on his own you may wave your hand over it, or blow on it to encourage it to fly away on its own, but be sure not to move your ball or touch the sand. If you remove the insect with your fingers you will be penalized TWO STROKES under Rule 13-4c.

The final trickiness……

Same ball, same determined little insect on your ball, and now you’re on the putting green. Can you remove the insect?

Yes, yes, yes you can.

You can mark and lift your ball and squish him really hard, which he deserves for following you around all this time.

You can blow him off, wave your hand over him, AND you can pick him off with your fingers. Even if your ball moves there’s NO PENALTY.

As long as the movement of your ball was DIRECTLY ATTRIBUTABLE to the removal of a loose impediment it’s allowed on the putting green under Rule 23-1.

Now I’m sure you’re totally confused, but a good Rule to follow is:

When in doubt "PLAY THE BALL AS IT LIES."

I hope this helps you, and please note that I said that the insect was a HIM, no LADYbug would dare to bug us.

Hilary

Hi Ladies:

I’ve recently been asked to repeat a couple of my Rules e mails. I’ve changed them up a little so you don’t get bored, and I’ve also changed the dog in last time’s example to some ducks. Now you’re really wondering what this is all about so here we go with the first quiz.

1. Which of the following is a stroke?

a) Backward and forward swing of the club, and the clubhead must make contact with the ball

b) One added to the player’s score when the player is in breach of certain Rules

c) Forward movement of the club made with the intention of striking and moving the ball

d) Forward movement of the club when the player checks their downswing voluntarily before the clubhead reaches the ball

Answer c) This is the Definition of a Stroke. The key to remember is:

“The intention to hit the ball with a forward movement of the club.”

2. Kathy is on the teeing ground, puts her ball on a tee and makes a practice swing and whoops she accidentally strikes and moves her ball with her club. What is the consequence?

a) Her playing partners yell out in unison “ONE”.

b) She gets a one stroke penalty for moving her ball

c) Her stroke counts, but no penalty

d) There is no penalty

Answer d) As you can see from question #1 Mary Beth didn’t make a stroke as she had no INTENTION of hitting her ball.

A “ball is in play”as soon as a player has made a stroke on the teeing ground. As she had not put a ball in play there is no penalty.

3. Kathy and her ball are now in the fairway laying two. She makes a practice stroke and again accidentally moves her ball. What are the consequences?

a) Her playing partners rename her Kathy Klutz

b) She has made a stroke at her ball and is now laying three

c) She has made a stroke at her ball, and gets a penalty stroke, so she’s laying four

d) She gets a one stroke penalty for moving her ball and is laying three

Answer is d).

Again, as in question #1, she didn’t make a stroke as she had no INTENTION of hitting her ball, BUT this time her ball is

“in play” so she gets a one stroke penalty for moving it.

She MUST replace it before she makes a stroke at her ball. If she doesn’t, you guessed it, she adds another one stroke penalty.

Now here come the ducks that you’ve been wondering about…………….quack,quack, quack.

4. Kathy plays her approach shot on hole #5 only to see that those poopy ducks are back again and are waddling across the green. After her ball lands about three feet from the pin, she sees the ducks scurrying away and then she sees her ball is now ten feet away. What happens now?

a) Kathy runs after the ducks waving her 9 iron wildly in their direction

b) She plays her ball, without penalty, from the spot where it ended up 10 feet away from the hole

c) She replaces her ball, without penalty, three feet away from the hole where it was before it was moved

Answers

a) Is understandable, but not in the Spirit of the Game of Golf, even though whacking them with her club would maybe stop them pooping

b) Is correct, IF her ball was accidentally DEFLECTED by the ducks.

They would be an “Outside Agency” and it’s “the rub of the green”. Rule 19-1

c) Is correct, IF she saw one of the ducks PICK UP her ball and take it to that spot 10 feet away, maybe thinking it was an egg?

Under Rule 19-1a the duck would be an “animate Outside Agency” and she can replace her ball, without penalty, as near as possible to the spot where her ball came to rest when the duck picked it up.

Whatever really happened let’s hope Kathy makes her putt wherever it’s from.

I hope this helps you.

Hilary