Rules question

[sam004]

Is it against the rules to carry extra golf balls on your person while playing ?
Or is it bad golf etiquette ?

I was playing with a casual friend the other day and I lost a ball and pulled a ball out and dropped it and was criticized for it.

Comments ?

[Smallville]

No and No.

It's actually good because you don't have to walk back to your cart or dig through your bag if you are carrying, whenever you need another ball. It saves time.

Besides, how are you going to go "Oh, I found it it's right here" and drop a ball down whenever you lose a ball and don't want to be penalized for it! Hahaha. Actually, maybe that's what the person you were playing with had an issue with. If so, he can get over it.

[Q.Q.Quillume]

Is it against the rules to carry extra golf balls on your person while playing ?

Maybe you were being criticized for dropping near where the ball was lost rather than going back to where you hit the previous shot and dropping there IAW the Rules of Golf!

[sam004]

Maybe you were being criticized for dropping near where the ball was lost rather than going back to where you hit the previous shot and dropping there IAW the Rules of Golf!

I agree with the rule part, but how practical is that in a casual game, not a tournement, not playing for any stakes.

I believe this was was mentioned in another thread recently about pace of play. With other players behind you, wouldn't you, for the most part just take a drop and a penalty and get on with the hole ?

[Lefty731PM]

I agree with the rule part, but how practical is that in a casual game, not a tournement, not playing for any stakes.

No.

You just have a miss on that hole. You aren't really scoring. That hole doesn't count - you don't say "I shot 85 or whatever because you didn't. You say "I hit it OK but stuffed up the 12th." or whatever. The penalty is stroke and distance. There is no occasion where you "just take a drop and a penalty" because there is no such thing except from a lateral hazard.

[Q.Q.Quillume]

I agree with the rule part, but how practical is that in a casual game, not a tournement, not playing for any stakes.

Well, the title of the thread is "

Rules question ". Right?

[Mr Eagle]

When playing in the winter I always keep a couple of balls in my trousers. I rub them while Im walking up the fairway.It makes sense to play with warm balls!

[Stacey_E]

If anything, it is good etiquette to carry an extra ball. When ever in doubt as to the "findability" of your shot, hit a provisional. And with an extra ball in your pocket you will save time in doing so. If you are on a handicap card, I suppose you could just enter your equitable stroke score for the hole after a lost ball and move on if pace of play won't allow a rehit from the original spot. But carrying a ball in your pocket is neither illegal nor imoral.

Now, carrying a ball in a pocket with a hole in it and dropping it where you want it to be...that's Oddjob/Goldfinger all the way.

[Q.Q.Quillume]

I agree with the rule part, but how practical is that in a casual game, not a tournement, not playing for any stakes.

To answer your question: No, I would not "just take a drop and a penalty and get on with the hole". I would either have hit a provisional ball if I thought my original shot might have been lost or out of bounds or if I failed to hit a provisional ball I would go back to the spot of my previous shot and drop a ball and take a penalty stroke - stroke and distance.

This is the kind of situation (losing a ball outside of a water hazard and having not hit a provisional ball) that comes up, for me very rarely. Generally the group I'm in is directly behind the group in front of us rather than directly in front of the group behind us, so taking a couple of minutes to play golf by the rules would have very little, if any, effect on the group behind us even if I had to go back to the previous spot to drop and hit. There is something at stake in virtually every round I play. And even if nothing were at stake I can't really figure out why I'd want to cheat rather than abide by the rules to the best of my ability.

[Stacey_E]

Generally the group I'm in is directly behind the group in front of us rather than directly in front of the group behind us.

Awesome, I'd love to use that in my signature.