Felony Ball Thievery

[beisenhauer]

I believe it was Mark Twain who said, "Before picking up a lost ball, the rules of etiquette demand that the player must first wait for it to stop rolling." Or something to that effect.

I've never really had a problem with this, and I only pick up balls that I'm certain cannot belong to anyone still playing the course.

[Klean]

I've had this happen to me a few times. I hit a drive that was on the edge of the curve of a dogleg left. And as I was driving up to my ball, I see a guy on the cart path veer off the path towards my ball as well. He picks it up as soon as I get there and I say, "Hey that's my ball"... He said "oh I thought it was mine because it was a noodle and I've lost 10 today".

Well I wanted to tell him that he's not the only one that uses them, but it has my initials in bright red right on the stamp of the ball, so I'm sure that was enough. He basically was stealing my ball because he lost so many.

It's frustrating to say the least. I hardly pick up any stray balls on the course and if I do, I make sure no one is around that could have hit it there.

[LottaBalata]

To the threadstarter--it is absolutely a question of etiquette. I personally don't deal with that particular problem on my home course. Its usually people who don't repair ball marks, or people parking their carts right in front of the green or completely on the opposite side of the next hole, 45 yards away.

If I played with someone that picked up my ball, I'd probably laugh at first, and then have a fit when I saw it again. That's crazy. If I saw it 3 times, I would definitely have to have a talk, and then I would quit playing with them.

I rarely pick up a ball unless I'm in the woods looking for one I lost!! If I happen to "find" one close by, I'm usually asking every person close by if the lost one, I'm looking back to the tee to see if someone is up there hitting. I have so many golf balls, I don't need anyone else's

[MrSandman]

I really have no idea how I would react if somebody in my group picked up my ball.

I would probably go to that spot, stare at the person with a confused look, like "joke is over", and continue to do so until they asked what I was doing. I might even put my arms out and ask if they were being serious or not.

[meenman]

I mark by balls with a big x on 2 sides - so I really get pissed when someone picks mine up (especially when they are the one on the wrong fairway). I just cant wait for the balls that I have ordered with *(my name) is the golf god* come in. At least the ball hunters will get a good laugh when they find those in the woods.

[MellowYellow]

LOL Meenman Finding 3 balls in one round from the Golf god Pretty funny.

My friend sometimes will find scared up balls on the course somewhere and he puts them in crazy spots to give people stories to tell... Right in the hollow of a tree, balanced ontop of a large rock etc.

[TheGolfingDetective]

There's no way this can come out sounding good, but with regards to the Asian women that picked up our balls (ahem), they played the "No English" card. And with the Asian players here (and around here, and it's a rather widely known stereotype) that DO pick up balls that are not their own, that tends to be the excuse, just a lack of communication. The older players that do it seem to just scoop and run.

And I have seen young kids do it, most recently two under twenty-somethings that drove straight across the 18th fairway, which is a 460 par 4 with a WIDE fairway, and they stopped near one of our balls, and by the time we could get there, poof, ball gone.

I loathe them.

[Trogdor]

I have acutally had 2 stolen recently around here, but its never really been a problem. The first time, was on a hole where you hit over a tiny creek on a dogleg right, I hit it right to the edge of the fairway where it meets up with the next holes fairway, and watched some guy pick it up. By time I got over the little bridge to confront him, of course he denied it. Lets just say the first hole after my buddies and I caught up, he almost got ear-holed by another Titleist that I had marked "Steal Me" Strangely, I found the first stolen golf ball in the cup at the last hole. And then I had a cat steal my ball, but thats a while different story.

[QWKDTSN]

Strangely, I found the first stolen golf ball in the cup at the last hole.

Human nature is funny. Guy stole your ball, probably knew that it might still be in play but decided to anyway. Got confronted, and wouldn't admit he was wrong, and lied to you. But his conscience made him leave your ball behind right where you'd find it, without him having to humble himself and apoligize.

I find a lot of stray balls, but it's only because I'm in the woods so often looking for the ones I put in there of my own! There have been many times I have found a ball in the rough in an out of the way area, and hesitated, and decided not to pick it up, and then had someone ask me a minute or two later if I'd seen X brand ball come through. Knowing that I can tell them just where it is, rather than guiltily knowing that it's in my bag, is great. Don't pick up balls unless you know they're lost!

[MellowYellow]

Actually what I usually do when I see a ball that I am 90% sure is lost that is kind of out of the way, Ill finish the hole I'm on, come back the other way and THEN go get it if it's there... of course this only works when it's inbetween your fairway and the next hole, not your fairway and the last since I'm not wasting 3 minutes to cross 2 fairways and dodge shots.

Golfing detective, I live on the West coast and have also heard that stereotype before I started golfing.

I didnt beleive it and thought people were just being dumb. I've only had ONE ball stolen that I know of, we teed off a hole that dog legs left so you actually want to hit over trees left of the tee box, I did just that, we saw it bounce in the rough between our 10th fairway and the 9th, but instead of rolling down the hill into the midle of the 10th fairway like normal i hit SOMETHING and it took a 90 degree turn into the 9th fairway. I was the last to hit off so we walked down and we saw an older asian lady walking up right in the general area, my ball was NO WHERE to be found and there was nothing we could think of to hide it.. She looked back a few times and that was the answer to our unasked question... I still dont think ALL asians steal your ball or hit into you or whatever, but it DID kind of suck that the one time I got jacked it was by an older asian lady.

[LottaBalata]

There's no way this can come out sounding good, but with regards to the Asian women that picked up our balls (ahem), they played the "No English" card. And with the Asian players here (and around here, and it's a rather widely known stereotype) that DO pick up balls that are not their own, that tends to be the excuse, just a lack of communication. The older players that do it seem to just scoop and run.

Lol. . .I'm 1/2 Korean and now I'm really upset with this thread. . .Just joking. I hate when people play this card. You don't have to speak English to know the rules of golf. I'm pretty sure you can find the rules in other languages!!! Simply a BS excuse. Etiquette is universal, or at least it should be. I bet if you pick up your cellphone when they do it again (if you were actually paired with these women again). . .Look at them say, "No english aye? Clubhouse, PO-LICE, U R A thief!!!" I'd bet they'd understand that. Not that I'd ever call the police for this reason, but it would be funny to mess with them for sure.

[RX Phoenix]

Confronting someone you think may have picked up your ball is a bad idea, more than likely they did not, is it worth all the stress just over a golf ball? If you're really sure they picked it up, drop a ball and play on. Usually you're ball is just in a unexpected place.

Put unmistakable markings on both sides of the ball and very few people will pick your ball up.

[golf_junkie27]

This problem exists due to course design and bad etiquette. I've played all over NYC and Westchester County. The fairways run parallel on almost every hole. When I played in Puerto Rico and Arizona, the courses were not designed like this and you did not have to worry about it.

Bad etiquette just stems from knowing that the ball does not belong to you and still picking it up. I'm sorry but there are only a few times you can pick up a ball: your in the deep woods looking for your own and you know that all balls are lost and you are conceding a putt to a buddy and flipping him the ball. There is also that rare exception when you are landing in some deep rough where you can't see the ball.

That said, too many people are just picking up balls and hitting balls they know don't belong to them . These are also the same people that lie about handicaps, playing ability, distance, etc. I've seen it and played with people that flat out cheat.

Kharma is a boomerang. Steal someone's ball and your liable to lose a club.

[Richie3Jack]

I've had some problems with that on muni's before. The best was one time on a par 5 I hit my second shot that went in this very distinguishable part of the sand trap up by the green. This was on hole #7. Some woman on hole #5 hit a drive over there (which is OB on #5) and then hit another one down the middle. She goes by to pick up her first ball, but is instead picking up my ball. I yell at her that is not her ball and she says "are you hitting a Titleist?" I tell her yes and she says "well, this isn't yours" and then proceeds to walk off with my ball, leaving me with a freaking Molitor.

My old man will hit the ball from time to time. For some reason he just forgets what ball he was hitting and when he sees a ball that he thinks is his, he doesn't check it to be sure. Drives me nuts.




3JACK