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Zach Johnson Penalised After His Last Putt on 18th 

Four More Tours Breaches

If you cannot view this video on email click here.
 

Kevin Na Chooses to Play off the Path I have not seen the TV coverage of the final round of the Player's Championship in TPC Sawgrass last Sunday, but I have received several enquiries asking why Kevin Na was permitted to play his ball from off the road on the 18th hole after taking relief. It was suggested that this was a breach of the Rules as he had not taken complete relief, as required by Rule 24-1b (see this blog on taking complete relief).

Once again the TV commentators seem to have caused some of this confusion by speculating that he was given the option of taking relief because a curb at the side of the path interfered with his stance. In fact, this was not the case. The walking Rules Official had informed Na that he was entitled to take free relief because his ball was lying in an abnormal ground condition close to the path, apparently caused by recent crowd damage. He then proceeded according to the Rules, which was to determine the nearest point of relief where there was no interference from the abnormal ground condition and was not nearer the hole, and drop his ball within one club-length of this point, which happened to be on the asphalt path. Na dropped his ball on the path and it came to rest in a position where it did not have to be re-dropped.  Because the asphalt path is an immovable obstruction he could then have taken free relief again by determining the nearest point of relief from it, not nearer the hole, and dropping a ball within one club-length of that point. However, he obviously decided that the lie that he had after placing his ball on the road was likely to be better than dropping the ball on the trampled grass at the side of the road. It is not mandatory for players to take relief from immovable obstructions (Rule 24-2b) and he chose not to do so. Hindsight suggests that he made the right decision as he was able to play a great shot onto the green and made his par with two putts.

I hope that you noticed that I wrote this whole piece about Kevin Na without mentioning his multiple waggles. Duh!!

(Edited 20th May 2012: Click here for the official explanation of this incident from John Van der Borght, Manager, Rules Communications, USGA.)
 

If you are interested in the Rules of Golf then I think that you will find my ‘Rhodes Rules School’ photo series interesting. You can receive them one at a time each week by email for 99 weeks, or you can purchase the whole set for $9, €7 or £6. Click here for a specimen copy and here to purchase. 

Unusual Use of Equipment Two weeks ago I heard about a player who received a useful tip during a lesson from his Club Pro. It was to help him keep his head still during his stroke until after the moment of impact. The advice was to tuck his chin into his chest, take his shirt into his mouth and bite on it until his stroke was over. He was pleased at how well this worked for him and used the technique during his next medal competition with great results. However, he was less pleased when he was then disqualified from the competition for using equipment in an unusual manner. Part of Rule 14-3 states;

The player must not use… any equipment in an unusual manner:
a. That might assist him in making a stroke or in his play; or
b. For the purpose of gauging or measuring distance or conditions that might affect his play; or
c. That might assist him in gripping the club, except that:
(i) gloves may be worn provided that they are plain gloves;
(ii) resin, powder and drying or moisturizing agents may be used; and
(iii) a towel or handkerchief may be wrapped around the grip.

Perhaps the harshest occurrence of a penalty incurred under this Rule was at last year’s USGA Senior Women’s Amateur at the Honors Course in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Andrea Kraus, 50, of Baltimore, Md., was playing in her first USGA Senior Women’s Amateur and was lying dormie 7 after the 11th hole when she was disqualified. Her caddie had a short string of yarn attached to his divot repair tool that he had used during the round to judge the direction of the wind. I do understand the reasoning behind the disqualification, but would be surprised if every Rules official would have arrived at the same ruling.

Examples of equipment that may not be used in an unusual manner in a golfing context are;
There are two important exceptions to Rule 14-3, which can be summarised as ‘for medical reasons’ and ‘traditionally accepted’;

Here are some examples of situations where the second exception applies;
So, golfers should think twice before using any type of equipment in an unusual manner; it is probably not permitted by the Rules unless it meets the above exceptions.
 

Has your Club/Society/Group considered running a quiz on the Rules? It's a great way to get to know the Rules better. I have three quizzes (General, Match Play and Juniors), comprising 4 rounds of 9 questions, which save you the chore of thinking-up suitable questions and providing accurate answers. Click on this link to learn more. 

Amended Decision on Improving Line of Play
