Following on from the rules thread..

[Twire]

Have you ever called a penalty on an opponent?

A couple of years back, I was playing in a South West qualifier with a mate. We were drawn at home to a couple of handy players, both single figure golfers (can't for the life of me remember what club they came from). Anyway, the match was all square when playing the 8th a long par four. We had all hit good drives, me and my partner down the left, one of them up the right and the other down the middle. My partner and me were standing together waiting for the chap on the right to play, he pulled out a wood stood behind his ball to pick a line, then walked up to his ball and stood directly behind it improving his lie. Me and my mate just looked at each other in disbelief then stupidly let him get away with it. He went on to win that hole, and we lost the match 2&1 I can't help thinking there might have been a different outcome if we had called the penalty. I guess being to easy going and not liking confrontation cost us the match.

Have you ever called a penalty on an opponent?

 

[KeefG]

I have....just the once and to be honest i felt a bit guilty about it afterwards but he should've known better!

I was playing this guy who was off 15 in a matchplay comp in my old society, at the time he was 2up and we were playing the 12th which was a short par 4. He had driven into a greenside bunker and i had put an iron up the middle and played my 2nd shot which i'd left about 15ft away. I was stood to the side of him watching his shot, he had a couple of practice swings and then grounded his club behind his ball and took away a load of the snd giving himself a much better lie. I asked him to stop his shot and called the penalty on him which he duly accepted. I won the hole and ended up winning the match too

 

[TonyN]

No reason to feel guilty about that one, thats a clear cut penalty if ever, and the fact he accepted unreservedly suggests he knew it too. I think most others would have done the same!

 

[KeefG]

I know but i was the divvy little kid playing off 28 and he was the experienced geezer playing off 15, to be honest if my mouth hadnt opened when it did and i blurted it out i would've let him get away with it.

And i did feel guilty afterwards, apparently it was the only time ever he'd had a penalty called on him so he gladly told the rest of our society.

Tit.

 

[Herbie]

I hope you all have an easy time of it when you call a foul against someone, I have rarely had to do it in the past but on the few occasions I have, I can recall just as many accepting it as there were those blowing up, dummy spitting and ranting.

 

[TonyN]

Keef it just goes to show you dont have to be the best of players to know the rules.

I think people automatically assume that good golfers must know all the rules and that single figure guys could never be wrong.

I am not clear on most of the rules, the rule book frightens me to death, I am trying to learn as much as possible, but I find the best way is when someone tells me what I am doing is wrong. I would never take offence even if a juniour girl off 36 pointed something out to me!

 

[Herbie]

Thats how I am too Tony, Ive read through the rules for the last 30yrs on and off but I still dont know them, too much confusion, interpretation and sometimes nonsense for me, but I do think I have a grasp of the basics, but thats about all, I have never needed any more knowledge than that to play the game.

 

[muttleee]

When I was pretty new to this game, a friend and I were playing in a foursomes match and one of our opponents tapped in after missing a 4-footer. It didn't even occur to me that this was a breach of the rules because it was easily within gimme range, but my partner jumped on it and claimed the hole. The guy who had tapped in realised his mistake and took it in good grace but his partner was mad! My partner said that he would have given it, but because the ball was tapped in before he had conceded the putt, it was our hole. There was a frosty atmosphere during the rest of the match, I can tell you! We won in the end. As my partner said afterwards, it's drummed into players on inter-club teams that they must NEVER tap in in a foursomes match. As he said, rules are rules and if the other team didn't like it, that was their problem. We could hold our heads high.

 

[HogansAlley]

The rule I've had the most difficulty explaining to partners happens when someone has hit their drive into the trees, and then played a provisional ball off the tee (which always goes straight down the middle). They find the original ball in an unplayable lie and then struggle to understand why they can't play the first provisional and must, under penalty, drop or go back to the tee instead. I hope I've explianed this correctly. Someone please tell me I'm right with this interpretation of the rules, otherwise I've pissed off several people over the years. Once the original ball is found, the provisional is not in play, right?

 

[DCB]

HogansAlley,

That's correct, if the original is found, no matter what the location or situation it is in (not OOB obviously) then the original is the ball in play and the provisional picked up.

 

[SammmeBee]

I remember some years back, we were playing the final of an county interclub knockout (10 a side) and we halved the match so there had to be playoff...there was a crowd of about 100 people watching the playoff...

Our man chopped his way up the hole and had a 6 footer for a 5, matey had hit it too about 15 feet in 2 - so 2 for it...

He putted up to about 6 inches and asked if it was given (!) - our man who was a man of very few words, as normal said nothing....matey went to tap in....and missed!!! Even his boys were laughing....

Our man holed out, onto the second, matey hits 2 OB in his fury - the rest is history as they say....

 

[Cernunnos]

The way I understand it you are correct Twire. A provisional ball is simply that provissional. Its there in case you do not find the original ball. Its just their missfortune that in some respects they've found it in an unplayable possition.

To be honest I'd prefer to take a drop where my first is unplayable than play the provisional or be going back to the tee again. as if its the provisional in play & first not found I'd be three off the tee. If I find the first & take a drop I'm there for two with the drop & can usually make some sort of shot. Otherwise again its back to the tee, the provissional ignored & three off the tee.

On the other hand I do sympathise with your playing partners as all this extra dropping or going back to the tee is slowing procedings down.

Its almost better to have declared the first ball lost & not looked for it in the first place. though there is nothing stopping anyone in the group being spoil sports & looking for said first ball even if the player has declared the first ball as lost... Though if they play their provisional ball in a position past the first ball before its found, then its the provisional ball that is in play.

Think I've gotten all that right.

 

[SammmeBee]

You cannot declare a ball lost but you don't have to go and look for it.....

 

[bobmac]

????

 

[Cernunnos]

Something vexes thee... bobmac?

 

[bobmac]

Though if they play their provisional ball in a position past the first ball before its found, then its the provisional ball that is in play.

Sorry, mis-read this bit.
I would re-phrase it to read
'If they play a provisional ball that is nearer the hole than where the original ball is likely to be then its the provisional ball that is in play'
Also
You cannot declare a ball lost?
If you hit a shot in the clart, you can hit another without claiming it a provisional therefor it is in play and the first ball is lost.

 

[TWM]

Back in the 70s I was playing in a society outing and my opponent did that on every shot. I did not report him but it spoiled my day. Fortunately he was nowhere near winning.

 

[SammmeBee]

Though if they play their provisional ball in a position past the first ball before its found, then its the provisional ball that is in play.

Sorry, mis-read this bit.
I would re-phrase it to read
'If they play a provisional ball that is nearer the hole than where the original ball is likely to be then its the provisional ball that is in play'
Also
You cannot declare a ball lost?
If you hit a shot in the clart, you can hit another without claiming it a provisional therefor it is in play and the first ball is lost.

Yes but if I want to go and look for it I can - probably not in strokeplay but defo would have a quick gander if we're playing match play....then if I find it you have to play and then not talk to me for the rest of the round....

 

[bobmac]

Yes but if I want to go and look for it I can - probably not in strokeplay but defo would have a quick gander if we're playing match play....then if I find it you have to play and then not talk to me for the rest of the round....

Unless I hit a shot with the provisional from a point that is nearer to the hole than the original ball is likely to be, then the first ball is lost.
How fast can you run?

 

[Cernunnos]

Though if they play their provisional ball in a position past the first ball before its found, then its the provisional ball that is in play.

Sorry, mis-read this bit.
I would re-phrase it to read
'If they play a provisional ball that is nearer the hole than where the original ball is likely to be then its the provisional ball that is in play'
Also
You cannot declare a ball lost?
If you hit a shot in the clart, you can hit another without claiming it a provisional therefor it is in play and the first ball is lost.

I stand corrected. Though I was sure I'd read it somewhere you could declare a ball lost, but unless its in the R&A bible & desicions...

Either way not got time to look tonight & I trust your knowledge over mine.

Infact I once fell foul by playing another ball, with the intention of calling it a provisional, but forgot to declare it as provisional, as I'd simply said "That's probably lost I'll play another" Unfortunatly, I'd not mentioned the magic word provisional....We all live & learn...