The Rules of Golf
Test Your Rules Knowledge
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A player’s ball comes to rest in an area marked as ground under repair. He determines his nearest point of relief and drops the ball within one club-length, no nearer to the hole. When he takes his stance, his foot is touching the line defi ning the ground under repair. He plays the ball from that point to the green. What is the ruling? A. There is no penalty. B. The player incurs a two-stroke penalty. C. The player is disqualifi ed for a serious breach of playing from a wrong place.
A player’s ball comes to rest in a thorny bush about 2 feet off the ground. If the player declares the ball unplayable, which of the following is a valid option? A. Drop a ball within two club-lengths of the point on the ground directly below where the ball lies in the bush, with a one-stroke penalty.
B. Drop a ball within one club-length of the nearest point of relief from the bush, with a one-stroke penalty.
C. Place a ball on the ground at the spot directly below where the ball lies in the bush, with a one-stroke penalty.
After a stroke from the fringe (through the green), while the ball is still in motion, which of the following is permitted? A. Moving the equipment of any player or the fl agstick when attended, removed or held up, that might infl uence the movement of the ball in motion.
B. Conceding the next stroke in match play. C. Marking and lifting a ball on the putting green that might infl uence the movement of the ball in motion.
In four-ball stroke play, while waiting for the fairway to clear on the 18th hole, a player takes a weighted donut out of her bag, slips it onto her driver and makes a few practice swings. What is the ruling? A. There is no penalty. B. The player is disqualifi ed from the hole, her partner incurs no penalty.
C. The side is disqualifi ed from the competition.
TEST YOUR RULES KNOWLEDGE ANSWERS: 1-B. Rule 20-2c requires the ball to be re-dropped when it rolls into a position where interference by the condition still exists. Since he did not re-drop the ball he played from a wrong place and incurred a two-stroke penalty in breach of Rule 20-2c. 2-A. See Decision 28/11. 3-A. While a ball is in motion, Rule 24-1 permits moving the equipment of any player or the fl agstick when attended, removed or held up. 4-C. Rule 14-3 and 31-7. For a breach of Rule 14-3 by any one player of a side, the whole side is disqualifi ed.
Stump the Rules Expert
RELIEF FROM A CART PATH David writes: Q: When taking relief from a cart path, you must drop within one club-length of the nearest point of relief, and the ball cannot roll more than two club-lengths. Can you use any club to measure the distance? For example, if your ball drops into heavy rough and rolls farther than two wedges but not as far as two drivers, can you mea- sure the distance with a lob wedge and redrop the ball? A: No. You must use the same club throughout an entire procedure. If you fi rst measure your one club- length from the nearest point of relief with your driver, you may not switch and measure whether the ball rolled two club-lengths with a wedge. See Decision 20/1.
A: Rule 6-6b requires the player to ensure that the marker has signed the score card and that the player signs it prior to turning it in. The player is only respon- sible for the hole-by-hole scores, not for the total. Rule 33-5 makes the committee responsible for the addition of the score card.
TURNING IN
YOUR SCORE CARD Bruce writes: Q: Does the golf score card have to be totaled and signed before turning it in?
BURIED LIE IN A BUNKER Ed writes: Q: A player’s ball ends up buried in a bunker. He searches for the ball by mov- ing sand, as permitted in the rules, and fi nds it. He makes a good attempt to recreate the lie he had before mov- ing sand but clearly makes the ball much more visible than just “a small part of the ball.” If he plays the ball with the added visibility, is it a one- or two-stroke penalty? A: If the player fails to meet the requirements of Rule 12- 1a by leaving a much larger portion of the ball visible than before the lie was dis- rupted, he would incur the general penalty for a breach of Rule 12-1: two strokes in stroke play or loss of hole in match play.
Edited by RYAN FARB, assistant director of rules and competitions. To submit questions, email
rfarb@ncga.org or visit the Stump the Rules Expert page of
NCGA.org (under the Rules menu).
SPRING 2014 /
NCGA.ORG / 71
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