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Sunday, 26 June 2011

Miscellaneous Questions on the Rules of Golf 

Here are three more recent questions;

Good golfing, Labels: golf rules, Rory McIlroy, Rule 16-1b, Rule 4-4, Rules of Golf

Monday, 20 June 2011

The Line of Putt I have to start by congratulating Irish golfer, Rory McIlroy, on his eight strokes US Open win. Fantastic, and there has to be a lot more to come. Also, I would like to applaud his caddie, Dubliner JP Fitzgerald, who received a lot of criticism for ‘allowing’ Rory’s meltdown at the 4th round in Augusta. He shared the pain then and it is good to see that he is now able to share the spoils of a great victory.

In my last blog I discussed the four ‘line ofs’ in golf and I thought that it might be useful to expand on another one of them, the line of putt.

The Definition of Line of Putt is;

The "line of putt" is the line that the player wishes his ball to take after a stroke on the putting green. Except with respect to Rule 16-1e, the line of putt includes a reasonable distance on either side of the intended line. The line of putt does not extend beyond the hole.

The reason why it is important for a player to understand the extent of their line of putt is because Rule 16-1a states that the line of putt must not be touched. Fortunately, there are seven exceptions to this Rule, which are;

(i) the player may remove loose impediments, provided he does not press anything down (loose impediments may be removed by any means, e.g. with the putter head, a glove, the back of a hand, or even with a brush!)
(ii) the player may place the club in front of the ball when addressing it, provided he does not press anything down (this is a practice sometimes used by players as part of their putting routine)
(iii) in measuring - Rule 18-6 (e.g. to see whose ball is further from the hole)
(iv) in lifting or replacing the ball - Rule 16-1b
(v) in pressing down a ball-marker
(vi) in repairing old hole plugs or ball marks on the putting green - Rule 16-1c (but remember that no other damage to the putting green may be repaired on the line of putt, e.g. spike marks or flagstick damage)
(vii) in removing movable obstructions - Rule 24-1 (remember that if you accidentally move your ball while removing anything from the putting green, whether it is natural or artificial, there is no penalty and the ball must be replaced, Rules 23-1 and 24-1a).

Decision 16-1a/5 rules on a situation that many players may experience when there is damage to the lip of a hole, often caused by the clumsy replacement of the flagstick. In this situation the player may only repair damage that has clearly been made by a ball (i.e. a pitch-mark). If the player touches the inside of a hole for any other reason they incur the general penalty under Rule 16-1. This confirms that the line of putt includes the hole itself.

Decision 16-1a/12 rules that if a player walks on their line of putt there is no penalty if they did so accidentally and the act did not improve their line. However, if a fellow-competitor or opponent accidentally steps on and damages the player's line of putt there is no penalty. In equity, the player may have the line of putt restored to its original condition, because one of the principles of the Rules of Golf is that the player is entitled to the lie and line of putt they had when their ball came to rest.
 I am pleased to report that my book, '999 Questions on the Rules of Golf', is now available on Kindle. However, if you would prefer to have a personally signed, hard copy you can order here.
Posted by Barry Rhodes 24 comments 
Sunday, 12 June 2011

Lines of Flight, Play, Putt and Drop 
Friday, 3 June 2011

Joost Luiten Is Disqualified for Signing for an Incorrect Score Photo: Golf Turismo

If only Dutch golfer, Joost Luiten, had been a subscriber to my ‘Rhodes Rules School’ series he may have avoided disqualification after the first round of the Memorial Tournament for signing an incorrect score card. In issue No.3 I pointed out that a ball that touches a water hazard stake or line is in the hazard. I am sure that he already knew that when a ball is in a water hazard a player may not ground their club in that hazard. Here is the sequence of events that led to his disqualification, as I understand them;
I have spelled out this sequence because I have seen differing versions of this incident, particularly from Golf Channel reporter, Rex Hoggard, who reported that Luiten’s ball was in a bunker!
There are four rulings involved here; first when any part of a ball touches the hazard it is considered to be in the hazard; second, when a ball lies in a hazard you have addressed the ball as soon as you have taken your stance (because you are not permitted to ground your club in a bunker); third, if your ball moves after you have addressed it, but before you have made a stroke at it, there is a penalty of one stoke and the ball must be replaced; fourth, the total penalty incurred is two strokes, not three, because of this penalty statement included in Rule 18;

Some golf correspondents are suggesting that the Rules official should take some blame for this Luiten’s disqualification. I really don’t think so. Of course, he could have specifically asked whether the ball was touching the line, but it was obviously the player’s responsibility to give the official all the relevant facts. In fact, I am incredulous that someone who must play golf nearly every day of his life did not consider that this was worth mentioning to the Rules official. If he did not know that the line defining the hazard was important to the ruling he was seeking then he should immediately be required to attend a Rules seminar as was suggested in March of last year by senior European Rules officials, John Paramor and Andy McFee (see this blog entry).

As I often say, when it comes to golf, know the Rules, know knowledge; whereas no Rules no knowledge. 5th June, 2011, edit: Thanks to one of my Dutch subscribers who has translated Joost Luiten's version of events from his web site. I don't think that it changes anything I have written above but it does explain that the official did not witness the incident and was not informed of the circumstances until the hole had been completed, at which time a relevant fact was omitted.

"My ball was in a water hazard and my feet were just outside the hazard. Just before I wanted to hit the ball, it moved. I asked my fellow competitors what to do and they confirmed my opinion that no penalty was incurred. I played hole 11 and told the referee about the incident. After that I didn't see or hear the referee about it. Only two hours after finishing my round the referee came up to me and wanted to hear the story. Then the referee concluded that as I had taken my stance and the ball was in the hazard I should have placed the ball back. (....) It is my mistake, I should have known the rule, but I was disappointed that the referee didn't come up to me before I signed my scorecard; he already knew at hole 11 that something was going on."

So, it was not just Joost Luiten that did not know that you have addressed your ball once you have taken your stance in a bunker, but his fellow competitors as well!