Ball moved accidentally

sunshine

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Dec 17, 2018
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I know the rule here: no penalty on the green, one shot penalty otherwise (assuming the ball is replaced before the next stroke). But why is there a difference between on the green and off it?
 
Baffles me too
I totally get if they ball isn't replaced then get a penalty but if replaced and not cleaned etc after an accidental then why treat green and fairway differently

(maybe its to do with the fact that you can/will usually touch and move a ball on a green and don't usually touch a ball anywhere else, so a player much more likely to have an 'ball moved by accident' on a green)
 
…and as for many such rules of golf you need to ask what, were the rule not in place, an unscrupulous player might seek to do, possibly unnoticed, and what advantage might be sought when his ball has a difficult or tricky lie in the General Area. Unfortunate but simply a fact of golfing life.

On the green the advantage gained by accidentally moving your ball will be minimal, if any, and much more noticeable were it to happen - and so it is always considered ‘truly’ accidental and no penalty if ball is replaced as required.
 
The rules have to written in such a way to cover all situations for which the same occurrence might happen. Easy to do on a green, hard to do on any other area for accidental movement.

e.g because you are unlikely to be playing a practice swing on a putting green, on a green if there is a loose impediment touching the ball you would probably mark and lift the ball before removing it.
 
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