louise_a
Money List Winner
I had a pitch mark on my line today, I said "I can't repair this can I?" I was surprised when both my playing partners said yes you can.
Who was correct?
Who was correct?
repairing pitch marks on the line of your putt
- Thread starter louise_a
- Start date
Colin L
Tour Winner
They were. You can repair pitch marks anywhere on the green including on your line of putt. Rule 16-1a(iv) and Rule 16-1c are your references.
duncan mackie
Money List Winner
as long as the pitch marks were on the green, as Colin says.
on the fringe, or fairway, and on your line is different.
on the fringe, or fairway, and on your line is different.
Colin L
Tour Winner
Sharper reading, Duncan! I hadn't noticed that Louise hadn't specified on the green.
louise_a
Money List Winner
Thanks chaps, yes I was putting on the green.
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
So I'm just off the fringe of the green and want to putt - and the fringe is a battlefield of crater-depth unrepaired pitch marks - with all having 'greenside' raised edges (due to compression of the ground caused by the ball landing) - and I can do nothing about it?
Colin L
Tour Winner
Yes, you can change your mind about putting and chip over it! No other help available.
bladeplayer
Money List Winner
only time this is possible AS FAR AS I KNOW is , you play your shot & it stops in the fringe , your partner plays & his/her ball pitches in front of yours & leaves a mark (& your sure it is this pitch mark) you can repair it .. you are entitled to the line & condition your shot had given you , previous to their shot been played
in your case it woud be very hard to prove which one your partner just made tho.. best not to touch them
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
hmmm - the thing is that that is not actually fair - the golfer has done nothing wrong and is getting penalised.
Taking scenario to another extreme - I'm twenty yds short of green and want to putt - but there are a few unrepaired divot 'scars' on my line - can I repair these? Because I probably would - but don't see why it is any different from the previous scenario.
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bladeplayer
Money List Winner
No unfortunatly not , as far as i know (there are better guys here for rules than me) you cant repair anything on your line off the green like that, if it was there before you played your shot .. Jezz Mashie Duncan or Colin might clarify this if ye are reading it please ,
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
But what counts as 'my line' when I'm short of the green - my line could be anything. Which means I can't repair any divots between myself and the green until I've played my shot?
bladeplayer
Money List Winner
I supose it would a reasonable line/path your ball would take to get to the hole
chris661
Money List Winner
Your reasonable is another man's unreasonable. This is why, sometimes, the rules seem stupid.
SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
The rules is the rules. But going back to being just off the green faced with a load of pitch marks. So I say to my playing partner that they are not on my line - and so can repair them - then change my mind about my line or say 'oops - mishit my putt but look - I clearly misread my line'...
Is it wrong for me to do such a thing to get round what is plainly an unfair scenario. This feels like another topic.
Is it wrong for me to do such a thing to get round what is plainly an unfair scenario. This feels like another topic.
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bladeplayer
Money List Winner
As i said earlier best not to touch them, if your in any doubt , play it as it lies , if you wana repair them do it after your shot , saves the issues if you do change your mind how to play it ..
IMO If you did change your mind & play over them it would be a penalty , have not come across this but i would think 2 shots .. just my opinion tho , im no rules guru
If you claimed to miss hit it off your line , id go by where it ended up , if it ends up well away from the hole ok you mishit it , if you knocked your miss hit stone dead .. mmm. ? id be wondering ha
IMO If you did change your mind & play over them it would be a penalty , have not come across this but i would think 2 shots .. just my opinion tho , im no rules guru
If you claimed to miss hit it off your line , id go by where it ended up , if it ends up well away from the hole ok you mishit it , if you knocked your miss hit stone dead .. mmm. ? id be wondering ha
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SwingsitlikeHogan
Major Champion
Yes - and so would I. But if the situation was obviously unfair, and could get no help from the rules - but I could get around the problem by saying I'm doing one thing - then do another...hmmm...
In golf what we say/think we are going to do or wish to do - -and what we actually do are often very different things.
Fader
Tour Winner
I didn't think you could touch anything on the green if you are off of it. E.g Rory getting a penalty for brushing sand off the green when he was on the fringe.
Best to play as it lies rather than getting penatly shots applied imho
Best to play as it lies rather than getting penatly shots applied imho
bladeplayer
Money List Winner
Rory brushed sand off the fringe not the green, sand that had been there before he played his shot ..
duncan mackie
Money List Winner
bladeplayer is doing well, but just a little more clarity on this one.
Rory did indeed remove sand from the fringe in front of his ball, and immediately realised what he'd done. the reason it would be different on the green is because sand, and loose soil, are loose impediments on the green but not elsewhere.
duncan mackie
Money List Winner
you keep going on about this, why is it unfair? it's the same for everybody.
it's no more unfair than finding your ball in a divot in the centre of a fairway after your best drive ever, or finding a large branch directly behind your ball in the middle of a bunker...
as to your earlier comment/question - your line is the the intended line, with an appropriate degree of latitude either side ie if you were putting from 5ft off the green it might be a foot either side of the actual line (taking into account slopes etc ie the actual line of play) whilst for a 200yd approach shot it could be 40yds wide at the green!
