Would You Ever Consider This a "Serious Breach"

[Deleted member 16999]

Playing on friday in an Ind Stab one of my fc's was asked to move his marker on the green, he then forgot to replace it when it was his turn and he putted out.

He realised his error on the next tee prior to teeing off, we discussed it and later in the bar, prior to handing in his card, determined it was a 2 shot penalty for playing from the wrong place under rule 20-7

One of the bar rule "guru's" disagreed and tried to claim he should be disqualified as he made no attempt to return to the green upon realising his mistake and therefore it was a serious breach as defined under that rule.

A serious breach to me is someone trying to play yards from the correct spot or to the side of a hazard etc.

Advice please.

 

[pogle]

No, a ball two or three inches out of place on a putting green is not a serious breach.

A serious breach will give a distinct advantage ti a player; as you say from playing much nearer the hole or dropping on the incorrect side of a hazard.

From 20-7
"A competitor is deemed to have committed a serious breach of the applicable Rule if the Committee
considers he has gained a significant advantage as a result of playing from a wrong place."

 

[Imurg]

I've got a feeling that, in a situation like this, the fault needs to be corrected before teeing off on the next hole and if it isn't then it's a DQ...

 

[backwoodsman]

No, on the face of it, l would not consider it a serious breach. He played out according to rule 20/7 and note 1 outlines what constitutes a serious breach - namely if the player gained a significant advantage. Provided he didn't gain a significant advantage, then he didn't commit a serious breach.

 

[pogle]

There is no need to correct the error

Decision 20-7c/1
Ball Replaced at Wrong Place on Putting Green and Holed
Q.

In stroke play, a competitor in replacing his ball on the putting green inadvertently put the ball in a wrong place nearby and holed out. The error was then discovered and the competitor put his ball in the right place and holed out. What is the ruling?
A.

Provided that the competitor had not committed a serious breach, the score with the ball played from the wrong place counts and the competitor must add two penalty strokes to that score (Rule 16-1b or 20-3a and 20-7c).


The competitor incurs no penalty for having putted from the right place after holing out from the wrong place.

 

[backwoodsman]

I've got a feeling that, in a situation like this, the fault needs to be corrected before teeing off on the next hole and if it isn't then it's a DQ...

The rule in this case specifically says you don't correct the mistake - you just add the two shot penalty.

 

[Imurg]

But he didn't...
OP says he realised the error but didn't go back to correct it...

 

[Deleted member 15344]

But he didn't...
OP says he realised the error but didn't go back to correct it...

It's just a two shot penalty and no need to go back and correct mistake

 

[Colin L]

It would have helped if your bar guru had just read through Rule 20-7 and reached Note 1.

Note 1: A competitor is deemed to have committed a serious breach of the applicable Rule if the Committee considers he has gained a significant advantage as a result of playing from a wrong place.


It is only if you consider that you have or might have committed a serious breach i.e. gained a significant advantage that you have to return and play a second ball before playing off from the next tee. If you do not think you have committed a serious breach you do exactly as your FC did - continue with the hole and add two penalty strokes for playing from a wrong place.

I can't see putting the length of a putter head away from where you should have played giving you any advantage far less a significant one. I've never seen a player when marking away do it to a place nearer the hole.

 

[guest100718]

No Zach Johnson did exactly this in a PGA event on the 18th hole. He failed to return his marker to the corect spot before putting out, A 2 shot penalty was added. Fortunelty it didnt affect the result.

 

[Imurg]

Fair enough....

 

[cliveb]

OP said it was a Stableford comp.
In which case, even a serious breach of 20-7 doesn't result in DQ, only a blob on that hole.
See rule 32-2.

 

[rulefan]

Sharp eyes