Three USGA rules in one violation
Or is it two violations and three rules when competitor putted for par?
I’m not the rules expert in the bunch of seniors who play regularly on Mondays, Wednesday, and Fridays when those days are available at Lonnie Poole Golf Course in Raleigh, or on Tuesdays and Thursdays when corporate outings close the course one of the three preferred days. We play net total score Mondays and Fridays with proximity winners for the five par 3s, and we play net skins on Wednesdays and consider those proximity winners as skins in the divided pot, and entry fee of a whopping six bucks! Pressure game.
As far the the rules of golf, I enjoy determining if the complex—though recently simplified—USGA rules are being violated by those seeking my retirement cash. And, because I toss out situations on the course and ask the fellow competitors if there’s a rules violation applicable and if so what is it, just to test their knowledge, every now and again, one of those opponents will offer up a description of what happened during play that day or some other day, tempting me to jump into the water-logged Players Edition of the USGA Rules I carry in my golf bag, or take the time to seek the answer via the USGA Rules mobile app on my iPhone or through a text or email or in person with one or more favorite rules officials.
When on the course, I really don’t seek to explain rules though I want all participants to play by the rules. But, I’m the one asked, such as when a player hit a long second shot across the red-lined water on the 15th hole at LPGC only to see the ball land on the bank and roll into the pond. “I drop over there?” he asks pointing to where the ball hit on the bank. I reminded him that the ball came down to earth inside the red lined area not outside it, so he had to drop where the ball last crossed the red line which was near where he originally struck it about 180 yards from the green.
Most of the time, when I see something that I feel is a rules violation, I’m quick to grab the rule book and start the research. In a recent foursome, one of my competitors had an uphill four-footer for par. He had marked, cleaned and returned his ball to the original spot and was ready to slam it home for par. As he addressed his ball, his putter glanced his ball causing it to roll forward. As the ball continued to move ahead, he took his putter back and through, hitting the ball and making the putt. Immediately, I recognized two violations.
USGA Rule 10.1d—Playing Moving Ball: You must not make a stroke at a moving ball. But there are three exceptions where there is no penalty: Exception 1 – Ball Begins to Move Only after You Begin Backswing for Stroke. Exception 2 – Ball Falling Off Tee. Exception 3 – Ball Moving in Water. Penalty for Breach of Rule 10.1: General Penalty. In stroke play, a stroke made in breach of this Rule counts and you get two penalty strokes.
His ball was moving forward, and though it was from an inadvertent touching of the ball, he committed a foul, a two stroke penalty for putting the ball that was in motion. However, if he had paused and not continued to putt, he could have replaced the ball to its original spot without penalty which he didn’t which carries another penalty.
13.1d1 Actions Allowed or required on Putting Greens: There is no penalty for accidentally causing a ball to move on the putting green if the player replaces the ball on its original spot (which if not known must be estimated). Not to replace the ball means a one-stroke penalty.
So, the player accidentally moved the ball which was in motion when he putted it so it sounds as if he should be penalized one stroke for not returning the accidentally moved ball to its original position and two strokes for hitting a moving ball. A three stroke penalty? Not so fast, as Lee Corso likes to say on ESPN’s College (football) Game Day when making predictions. Let’s visit a third USGA rule:
Rule 1.3C(4): When Breaches Resulted from a Single Act or Related Acts. The player gets only one penalty; but if the act or acts breached multiple Rules involving different penalties, the higher-level penalty applies. (In this case, just two strokes need to be applied and not three.)
In researching for this article, reading in great detail the Rules of Golf was required. While there are plenty of complicated situations in the Rules while playing the simple game of golf—hit the ball, find the ball, hit the ball again until you hit it into a cup on the correct green—the basic rules are in the first rule of golf:
Rule 1 - The Game, Player Conduct and the Rules: Purpose of Rule: Rule 1 introduces these central principles of the game for the player: Play the course as you find it and play the ball as it lies. Play by the Rules and in the spirit of the game. You are responsible for applying your own penalties if you breach a Rule, so that you cannot gain any potential advantage over your opponent in match play or other players in stroke play.
Just a suggestion: If you play golf for enjoyment, competition, exercise or other reasons, read in its entirety Rule 1 - The Game, Player Conduct and the Rules.
So, I watched the gentleman putt that day, inadvertently touching and moving his ball forward as he proceeded to putt. He accidently moved the ball from the original spot and he struck a moving ball. He should have taken a two-stroke penalty. When it was suggested he had violated those rules, he quickly said, “I didn’t see the ball moving before I hit it.” No big deal, I thought, saying, to defuse the situation, “Well, there’s no instant replay out here so we can’t review it.” Oh, well, another learning experience for me and now for you. Just remember Rule 1: You are responsible for applying your own penalties if you breach a Rule, so that you cannot gain any potential advantage over your opponent in match play or other players in stroke play. Turns out he was the big winner that day.
If you’re a golf rules official and know a lot more than I do, please let me know if I got it right. And, if you have a rules question, please ask. If I don’t know the answer off hand, I’ll research it by reading the Rules of Golf or by asking a rules official.