Who Asked the Rules Guy Anyway?

September 7, 2006

FOR THE LOVE OF THE GAME

They tell the story of the Texan who has taken himself off to the Mecca of golf and is playing one of the grand old courses of Scotland accompanied by the required elderly local caddie. On the fourth hole the American tops his drive and it rolls about one hundred yards down the fairway. He immediately re-tees and smacks the next ball straight down the middle. Turning to his caddie he says, “Back home we call that a mulligan”.

Unfazed, the venerable Scot replies, “Over here, we call it three off the tee”.

This raises the idea that in reality each of us plays with our own personal subset of the full Rules of Golf. No one would really expect that for instance, at our level, we would be required to use only one type of ball throughout each round. And, virtually all of us, when not in a match play situation, employ the practice of having all golfers hit onto the green before removing the flag, regardless of who is actually away.

However, without an interest in learning the rules, we are dependent on the knowledge and often misconceptions, and attitudes of others to define how we are to proceed. Without foundation knowledge of the rules, we have no idea which rules we are following, and which we are choosing to ignore. In short, we are not really allowing ourselves to fully participate in this great game of golf.

I have enjoyed preparing these little vignettes relating a few of the rules to our course. It is hoped that they might help to stimulate an awareness and interest in the game. We are privileged to play in an environment where, for the most part, the rules are taken seriously; on a course that is carefully set up to apply them properly. For many of us, a broadening knowledge and debate about the game and how it is to be played, is just one more aspect of the enjoyment to be derived from playing golf.

I would like to acknowledge the various members of the Senior Men’s League, and the Blue Mountain Professionals for their suggestions, reviews, and comments.


August 9, 2006

LOST ON THE 12TH HOLE

Have you ever really thought about the 12th hole? I am convinced that it is our most unusual and instructive hole, when viewed from the standpoint of red lines and stakes. For those of us who like to think about and debate rule applications, it is a classic.

Here are a couple of things for the self-proclaiming rule knowledgeable among you to mull over:

Where do the red stakes on the right side of this hole go and why?

Do the red lines and stakes on the far side of the pond apply to you if you are using the white or blue tees?

The twelfth hole also serves very well to illustrate what I believe is the most often misapplied rule in golf. Here is a scene that many of us have often witnessed and wondered if we should say something. While playing his second shot on #12 from just next to the 150 yd. marker, a player’s ball veers to the right, hits the path and appears to jumped into the wooded area just short of where it turns to take us to the 13th white tees. After a diligent search by the group, the player says that he will just drop a ball 2 club-lengths from where the ball likely went into the woods and take a one-stroke penalty.

What’s wrong here? The player is applying the water hazard options where there is no water hazard (red or yellow stakes). We have spent a good deal of time discussing the fact that you can not have a lost ball in a water hazard. The corollary is just as true. On our course, a player can not proceed as though he is in a water hazard where there are no stakes or lines to indicate that he is in fact in a water hazard.

So what should have happened? This is a simple case of a ball lost in the woods. There are no red stakes along the right edge of the wooded area on the 12th hole. Where they are is interesting, but they a not along the edge. If there had been any doubt that the ball would be found, the player should have hit a provisional ball from the 150 marker area immediately after hitting the shot in question. Not having done so, his only true option was to return to the place near the marker where the original ball was played and replay the shot from there, after taking a one-stroke penalty (stroke & distance).

Now I hear some of you thinking, that that would tie up the course and it’s not really that important. You’d like to do something and just move on. Well I might be able to accept this concern for expedience if I heard more people say, “I’m just going to drop a ball here and take a two-stroke penalty in lieu of going back to replay“. Not really correct, but more in line with the actual penalty (stroke& distance), which should be taken. A one-stroke penalty in these situations is inappropriate because it compromises the risk/reward aspect of the game.

As for the red lines and stakes along the south side of the pond, they have nothing to do with you if you are playing the hole from the white or blue tees. They are there for the hole as it is played from the red tees. Back tee golfers are meant to play the hole as if these lines do not even exist.

 


August 2 , 2006

BALL UNPLAYABLE, THE GET OUT OF JAIL FOR A STROKE RULE

Rule 28, Ball Unplayable is a rule that you should get command of for two reasons: 1. It is very useful for getting you out of all kinds of problems that would otherwise leave you stymied. 2. You need to be familiar enough with this rule to protect yourself against all of the misconceptions that others may have about it.

Okay, put on your thinking cap and try to deal with this from the Rules of Golf.

“The Player may declare his ball unplayable at any place on the course except when the ball is in a water hazard. The player is the sole judge as to whether his ball is unplayable.”

Most of us are familiar with the three relief options associated with this rule: For a stroke, replay, two club-lengths, or back along the line where the ball lies and the flag. So how come it gets so screwed up with other rules? Did you notice the exception? We’ve seen this type of exception before haven’t we? Okay lets deal with this one. YOU CAN NOT HAVE AN UNPLAYABLE BALL IN A WATER HAZARD. This includes all of the areas that are marked with red and yellow stakes and lines throughout the course. While the relief options are similar, you can not move the ball two club-lengths from where it lies for a stroke, or go back along the line where the ball lies and the flag, when you are in a water hazard. Knowing this looks after about 90 % of the misconception problems with this rule.

I probably should just mention quickly the other little restriction associated with this rule. You can declare a ball unplayable in a bunker, but your two club-length or back-along relief must be taken in the bunker. Might be worth thinking about the next time you are plugged under a lip or facing a high-sided bunker shot.

There are lots of stories in golf lore involving the quick witted and even humorous application of this rule to various situations. The other day I heard one, which may or may not be true, involving our own internationally recognized Senior Champion.

One very popular misconception is that a player can declare a ball lost at any time. This is not true. In order for a ball to be considered lost one of three actions must take place. Declaring it lost is meaningless. However, as we have seen, a player may declare a ball unplayable at any time, which is just as useful. Coincidentally, as soon as you replay for an unplayable ball, you have performed one of the three actions, putting another ball in play, which also qualifies the original ball to be considered a lost ball.


July 26, 2006

“RELOAD”- OKAY FOR SIX-SHOOTERS AND SHOTGUNS; BUT NOT GOLF

You are breathing a big sigh of relief having just stroked a beauty down the center of the 13th fairway.

Your playing companion who has rattled a ball around the trees that you really didn’t see because you were busy waving to someone on the 2nd fairway, boldly states, “Well I guess I better reload.” or “I’ll just hit another one.” You hear these expressions and others like them all the time. But, what has really been said? In golf terms, not much.

When a player re-tees a ball, they are electing one of two options, hitting a provisional ball or putting a new ball into play. Players need to clearly state which of the two things they are doing so that everyone can understand how they intend to proceed down the hole.

In fact, it is required that you indicate that a ball is a provisional, otherwise, it defaults to being a new ball in play. On a complex hole like # 13, it is especially important to understand what options are allowed and what the intensions and implications of re-teeing are going to be.

There are really only two situations in which you can and should hit a provisional ball. When you think your tee shot or any other shot might be unfindable in any area other than a water hazard or when you think that your tee shot or any other shot might be out of bounds. Generally speaking, if we use # 13 as an example, if you drove the ball into the woods on the right side, you are in a water or lateral water hazard (staked yellow or red) and should not be hitting a provisional ball. If you drove a ball into the woods on the left side, up by the targets, you should be hitting a provisional ball.

One of the challenges of learning to play the game of golf properly is to get beyond the simplistic idea that wooded areas are wooded areas and long grass is just long grass. As we have discussed, a great deal of time and effort has gone into defining the course in golf terms for us. From a golf perspective, the right and left side of the 13th hole could not be more different. For those of us who like to think that our game has progressed beyond a simple walk in the park, it is the recognition of and dealing with these differences that are a big part of the lifelong challenge of being a golfer.

Using terms like “reload” and “hit another” is roughly the equivalent of asking everyone to move on down the fairway and just let the player make up something once they see where the original ball ended up. Next time you hear one of these expressions, why not ask, “Are you playing a provisional, or putting a new ball into play?”

 


July 19, 2006

BACK-ALONG LINES, THE TOO OFTEN FORGOTTEN ESCAPE

Perhaps, because we don’t have many doglegs, options which allow us to “drop a ball......with no limit to how far behind that point the ball may be dropped”, tend not to be a big thing at our course. Two rules that have this option come to mind: Rule 26 which deals with relief procedures for hazards and water hazards and Rule 28 which deals with ball unplayable. However, remembering these at the right time could just make the difference in your being declared the Wednesday morning winner or coming out victorious in a closely contested match.

Let’s take a look at a couple of examples:

You have just hit a very solid second shot toward the corner on #13. Since this is a bit of a fantasy, for this exercise you are allowed to think of this as your second shot. It is going to be a bit tight to the corner,....damn; it just catches the very corner and dives into the hole in the lateral water hazard (red stakes) at this point. So what are your options? 1. Play it as it lies? Not really possible. For a one-stroke penalty: 2. replay and give up all that distance. 3. drop two club-lengths from the point the ball crossed the margin of the hazard, not nearer the hole. Too often we stop thinking here. But if you choose the two club-length option you are left with a downhill lie, in the rough, directly behind the bushy area at the corner of the hazard. Some option!

But there is one more. We skipped over option b. of the water hazard or lateral water hazard relief options; the drop a ball behind as far back as you want option. Okay let’s see how that would work here. Keeping the point where you crossed the margin of the hazard in line with the flag go back as far as you want. Whoa....., you can go right out into the center of the fairway with a pretty good shot at the green. Now how did Graham tell you to set up to hit a bit of a fade?

 

Here’s one for an unplayable ball:

You’ve badly pulled your drive on #15 and come to rest in the center of one of those big evergreens on the left side next to the yellow tees. You like to think that you take your golf seriously, so wrongly just hauling it out with your retriever and throwing it down in the open as many do, is not really your style. Let’s consider our options. Back to the tee? Okay, but you hate to give up the distance on the toughest par 4 on the course on which to get home in two. Two club lengths for a stroke. That would get us half way out from under the tree. Maybe you could do that a couple of times.

Oops, we almost forgot about option c. for relief when we have an unplayable ball. For a one stroke penalty, you can simply keep the point the ball has come to rest in line with the pin and go back out by the big bunker on #13 to an open area that gives you a crack at sending your next shot down the 15th fairway.

As you can see getting command of the back-along concept can come in very handy. This is especially true if you find yourself playing a course with a lot of doglegs. Also, you will amaze many of your friends and relatives when you drop your ball in the center of some fairway.

There is one important caution. Watch out for the common misconception that the back-along line is the line of flight taken by the ball to fly into the hazard or get to the unplayable position. This is simply wrong and makes a big difference when you are talking about ponds and doglegs. You must keep the point in question in line with the flag. Incoming line of flight is irrelevant. This misunderstanding is so widespread that you can probably get a free beer or two just knowing this last point alone.

 


July 12, 2006

NOTHING PROVISIONAL WHEN YOU ARE IN A WATER HAZARD

So you’ve just curled in a fifteen-footer for a par on #10. It has not been a very good day so far, but at least the back nine is off to a decent start.

Moving to #11, your wife is standing up by the bench to the left of the red and yellow tees. You try to give your tee shot a little help to get it up in the air so that it will carry to the green and as so often happens when you do this, you catch it thin. Off it goes shooting along the ground over the forward tees. “Did you see where that went, Honey?”

“Yes, it went into the bulrushes.”

You holler back, “I guess I’d better hit a provisional.”

But wait a second. Let’s think about this for a minute. Didn’t the Rules Guy say that YOU CAN NOT HAVE A “LOST BALL” IN A WATER HAZARD? And, aren’t provisional balls part of Rule 27, the Lost Ball or Out of Bounds rule? Your wife has confirmed that you are indeed in the hazard. Therefore, hitting a provisional ball is not an option.

If you re-tee, you will be electing to abandon the first ball and putting a new ball into play. It is one of your options under Rule 26, the water hazard rule, but a better choice might be to drop a ball up by the forward tees keeping the point where you think the ball crossed the margin of the hazard between you and the pin. Take a one-stroke penalty for being in the hazard, whether or not you ever find the ball, and hit your third shot from there. Of course, if you do find the ball, you always have the option of trying to play it as it lies, without incurring any penalty.

This is a water hazard (yellow stakes). Unlike a lateral water hazard (red stakes), there is no mention of two club-lengths in your options, so forget about that. Make sure you go back along the line keeping where you crossed the margin of the hazard in line with the pin until you have a nice level lie. Up next to or behind the red or yellow tees should give you a nice little shot up to the green.

A popular misconception is that the line that you go back along is the line of the flight of the ball into the hazard. This is incorrect. Lines to go back along for both water hazards and lateral water hazards are determined by keeping the point where you crossed the margin of the hazard in line with the flag.

So, let’s make sure you’ve got it. If YOU CAN NOT HAVE A “LOST BALL” IN A WATER HAZARD, and provisional balls onlyapply to “lost or out of bounds” situations, then YOU DO NOT HIT “PROVISIONAL BALLS” WHEN YOU GO INTO WATER HAZARDS. And, water hazards are all those areas marked with red and yellow lines and stakes throughout the course.

 


July 5, 2006

NO SUCH THING AS HAZARDOUS LOSSES

Let’s see if we can take a stab at sorting out one of the most common golf rule misconceptions and the source of a lot of confusion.

Okay, try this without considering your whole list of “But, what if......?” thoughts. Repeat after me out loud, YOU CAN NOT HAVE A “LOST BALL” IN A WATER HAZARD. Now work through your list and after each say out loud, YOU CAN NOT HAVE A “LOST BALL” IN A WATER HAZARD.

The Rules of Golf states the following:

“Rule 27. Ball Lost or Out Of Bounds; Provisional Ball

Exceptions: If there is reasonable evidence that the original ball is lost in a water hazard, the player shall proceed in accordance with Rule 26-1.”

This says that everything you know or have ever heard or read about Rule 27, the “lost ball” rule, does not apply to a ball that you can not find in a water hazard. Water hazards are all those areas defined by either yellow or red lines and stakes throughout the course. When you are in a water hazard, Rule 26, the “ water hazard” rule takes over.

Then why bother looking for a ball in a red or yellow staked area? From a rules standpoint the only reason to look for a ball in a water hazard is to decide whether or not you want to play the ball as it lies.

One last thought: YOU CAN NOT HAVE A “LOST BALL” IN A WATER HAZARD.

June 28, 2006

DON CAMPBELL'S COLOURFUL LINES AND STAKES

To play golf as it was meant to be played on any course, you need to know three things; The Rules of Golf published by the RCGA, the characteristics and features of the course you are playing, and any local rules that have been put in place. It is the second of these, that all those lines and stakes or the absence of them, are all about.

Many courses have chosen to compromise the true game of golf in order to achieve revenue or other goals. Unfortunately, this has led to a lot of the confusion surrounding the rules. And, one need only play a course that does not have these markings at all, to know just how important they are to the enjoyment of the game. At Blue Mountain, Don Campbell and his crew, under the direction of the Course and Grounds Committee have meticulously marked the course to clearly indicate what we are dealing with, while taking care to preserve the traditions of the game. It is worthwhile to take a minute to notice what a great job they continue to do.

Well, where can we learn more about what the markings mean and how to apply them? There are many good books and the Internet is a great source of this type of information. In addition to the good sites of the RCGA and USGA that includes animated explanations, aficionados can check out www.leithsociety.com .

A good first step is also available right at the course. Next time you are hanging around the shelter on the Fourteenth Tee, why not take a minute to look over the excellent signs that set out the relief options and procedures for water hazards? These options and procedures apply not only to this hole, but also wherever you encounter red and yellow stakes and lines throughout the course.

June 21, 2006

SPRINKLER CONTROLLERS AND OTHER “IMMOVABLE OBSTRUCTIONS”

Boy, another great day for golf at Blue Mountain. A new game and hope springs eternal. You’re on the First Tee and ready to hit it down the middle.

Off it goes......, not bad......, a bit of a tail......, but fairly well hit. You watch it settle over by the sprinkler controller among the trees on the right side of the hole. So you know about where it is and there should be no trouble finding it.

When you get up to the ball, you realize that the sprinkler controller is right in line with your best shot back to the fairway. You’re pretty sure that you remember reading about relief from “immovable obstructions" at some time. And on television, the Pros are forever getting relief from cables and stands and what not. What is the ruling with regard to this type of obstruction anyway?

What the rule book says is that you only get relief from the sprinkler controller, or any other type of “immovable obstruction”, if in fact the obstruction interferes with your stance or your swing. If it does, you are entitled to drop your ball one club length from the nearest point-of relief that is not nearer the hole without penalty.

What if you have a clear swing, but the controller is right in your way? Well, unfortunately, the rule book says “intervention on the line of play is not of itself interference under this rule“. It is pretty much the same as being behind a tree. However, if you are entitled to the swing or stance interference above, there is nothing preventing you from taking your one club length drop to one side or the other of your nearest point-of relief, as long as it is not nearer the hole.

And what about all that relieving and dropping on television? A few years ago a special set of rules was put in place covering all of the temporary paraphernalia used during tournaments. The relief you see the Pros getting is usually covered by these special rules and does not apply to you, other than to add to your confusion.

One other reminder. Relief, when there is no penalty, is usually one club length from the nearest point-of-relief. That is the point where you would need to place the ball in order to have an unimpeded swing. Relief when it costs you a penalty stroke, is usually two club lengths from some point, such as where the ball lies or the margin of a hazard.

June 14, 2006

FLOWER BEDS

So you’re playing your second shot into the green on Number Ten and the ball drifts to the right into the large flowerbed next to the Eleventh tee. No problem right? It’s a free lift. You figure, that you’ll just go up there pull the ball out and drop it at the nearest point-of-relief, not nearer the hole and carry on without penalty.

But when you get there, even though everyone saw the ball go into the flower bed, you can’t find it. You don’t really want to go rooting around under the plants, and the ball is nowhere to be seen in the open. What do you do now? Should you go back and replay the shot that got you there? Should you just take a two-stroke penalty for losing the ball and carry on?

The first thing you need to know is that flower beds at our course fall into a general category referred to in the rule book as Abnormal Ground Conditions that also includes ‘ground under repair”. The “lost ball” rule does not apply to balls lost in an Abnormal Ground Condition. Therefore, there is no penalty for losing the ball in one of our flowerbeds.

In order to proceed, simply determine the nearest point-of-relief to where the ball entered the flower bed, that is not nearer to the hole, drop another ball, and proceed without penalty. Of course, if you had found the ball in the flowerbed, your relief must be taken at the nearest point-of-relief not nearer the hole, to where the ball had come to rest.