Rules question: moving ball = penalty?

[muttleee]

one thing though, i never put the ball back where it came from and continued to play from where it had been blown to. Is this a further strokes penalty?

I'm pretty sure it is. Davis Love fell foul of this rule a while back when he accidentally moved his ball when practising his putting stroke (on the 18th at Sawgrass, I think it was, but don't quote me on that ) He added a penalty stroke to his score but didn't replace the ball and was eventually disqualified for signing for an incorrect score. He should have added a further penalty for not replacing the ball. He was particularly concerned at the time because the loss of earnings that week could have cost him his Ryder Cup place...but luckily for him, it didn't.

 

[Twire]

one thing though, i never put the ball back where it came from and continued to play from where it had been blown to. Is this a further strokes penalty?

I'm pretty sure it is. Davis Love fell foul of this rule a while back when he accidentally moved his ball when practising his putting stroke (on the 18th at Sawgrass, I think it was, but don't quote me on that ) He added a penalty stroke to his score but didn't replace the ball and was eventually disqualified for signing for an incorrect score. He should have added a further penalty for not replacing the ball. He was particularly concerned at the time because the loss of earnings that week could have cost him his Ryder Cup place...but luckily for him, it didn't.

If he moved it with his putter could'nt he just add a stroke instead of calling a penalty on himself?

 

[muttleee]

If he moved it with his putter could'nt he just add a stroke instead of calling a penalty on himself?

I don't think so since he wasn't officially making a stroke at the ball. That's my interpretation anyway. I'm open to other opinions, though.

 

[bobmac]

The first think i do when putting is ground the club and set up the line of my shot...

one thing though, i never put the ball back where it came from and continued to play from where it had been blown to. Is this a further strokes penalty?



flippin' stupid rule.

Sorry slugger. If you had grounded your putter and it moves, you must replace it

 

[Leftie]

The decisions book has the following
Q. When is a club considered grounded in long grass.
A. When the grass is compressed to the point where it will support the weight of the club.

Whilst not an exact answer, it certainly implies that "grounded" is when the weight of the club is no longer being supported solely by the player. Think of it as when you let go of the club, it won't drop any closer to the ground - ie the last of your choices

Thanks for that mate.

Assuming that this also applies to shorter grass and indeed the putting surface, it's a very tight call then as to whether the club has been grounded on the green. As usual I suppose it's up to the player to be honest and call it.

Wouldn't it be a breath of fresh air if players of other sports/games called penalties on themselves (don't know why but football 1st comes to mind...)