Rule question!

[MiniMoe]

In tournament play there is a local rule requiring the player to play one brand of ball throughout the round. (you can change brands from one round to the next, but not in the same round) If that rule is not in place, a player can change ball between holes, but is not allowed under the rules to change ball during the play of a hole. So, you can not change from a top-flight to a pro v-1 when you get to the putting green, but you can change from a top-flight that you played on hole 1 to a pro v-1 you want to play on hole 2. If you lose a ball in the water, you have to finish the hole with the brand you started with.. on that hole. And you can not use a separate "putting" ball on a hole. You have to use the exact same ball you started the hole with... unless you lose it. If you change, there is a 1 shot penalty.

[iacas]

If you lose a ball in the water, you have to finish the hole with the brand you started with.. on that hole.

Everything else you said was right but that part's wrong.

[zeg]

Everything else you said was right but that part's wrong.

Exactly. To say what's been said a dozen times just one more time:

The ONLY rule that makes any reference to the type of ball in use is the tournament rule limiting you to a single make and model for the round. Other than that rule, the RoG only care about whether the ball is in play or not. If you're entitled to substitute (or to play a provisional), you can use any [conforming] ball you can scrounge up. Make or model don't come up anywhere else.

[RC]

My bad... I thought all you guys were a qualifying at the PGA qualifying school rounds (just kidding.) Seriously, rules change over time and that is why you needs to get the latest USGA information and read it. It is free online and I think they still send you a new rule book every year if you are a member. More importantly, get the Decisions on the Rules of Golf supplement. It is an amazing compendium of special cases and rulings. Is a pineapple a removable obstruction in a bunker? Well maybe not in Hawaii, but it is in Utah. Which begs the question, is a Burger King wrapper a natural part of a hazard in Texas (where I live.)

Also, I just checked and the rule about the maximum number of balls in the bag at the start of a round on the PGA tour is no longer in effect. You can pack as many as you want. Must have been a Caddie's union rule in the past.

[Fourputt]

. More importantly, get the Decisions on the Rules of Golf supplement. It is an amazing compendium of special cases and rulings. Is a pineapple a removable obstruction in a bunker? Well maybe not in Hawaii, but it is in Utah. Which begs the question, is a Burger King wrapper a natural part of a hazard in Texas (where I live.)

I think you need to review the definitions for

loose impediment and obstruction . A pineapple is a loose impediment no matter where you happen to be in the world. It is never an obstruction.... unless it's made of plastic.

[RC]

Yep, you are right, here is a decision:

23/3 Half-Eaten Pear
Q. A half-eaten pear lies directly in front of a ball in a bunker and there is no pear tree in the vicinity of the bunker. In the circumstances, is the pear an obstruction rather than a loose impediment, in which case the player could remove it without penalty?
A. No. A pear is a natural object. When detached from a tree it is a loose impediment. The fact that a pear has been half-eaten and there is no pear tree in the vicinity does not alter the status of the pear.

I am surprised by this because I sure thought I had read in the past that even an organic impediment could be an obstruction if it was not native to the area -- apparently this is not so. I'll have to be careful next time I'm in a bunker and encounter a foreign object, like a killer whale. I just read a decision that ruled a dead crab could not be removed either, it is an impediment... Thankfully there are decisions about live snakes. We have those where I play.

Thanks for pointing out the error. I need to know such things and surely need to reread the rules and decisions.

[iacas]

A. No. A pear is a natural object. When detached from a tree it is a loose impediment. The fact that a pear has been half-eaten and there is no pear tree in the vicinity does not alter the status of the pear.

Wait, but what about a half-eaten candied apple?

[RC]

I like the candy apple one -- plastic and organic. So am I to take it that a gummy bear that is not embedded is an obstruction? I could pick it up but not eat it due to the sandy coating (it is summertime.) One could have fun with this rule. Suppose (God forbid) you are on the clock and have to hurry. A cat in a tree has a heart attack and falls lifeless in the bunker just in front of your ball. Under this reasoning, you would have to hit it. Surely not. (Apologies... totally uncalled for.)

[iacas]

Under this reasoning, you would have to hit it.

C'mon, like you need a reason to hit a cat... !!!

I'm joking. 99% anyway. Devout dog person...

[ryanf]

Which begs the question, is a Burger King wrapper a natural part of a hazard in Texas (where I live.)

A Burger King wrapper must definitely considered as hazard along with the wrappers former contents. Whether its natural or part of THE hazard, I leave to your discretion. ;)

[Fourputt]

Wait, but what about a half-eaten candied apple?

Good question. An ice cube (known in the rules as "manufactured ice") is an obstruction, so I would suspect that any other natural object which has been subjected to human engineering would also be an obstruction, although it may be a matter of the degree of man-made interference with nature.

The candy apple is one I'd have to run by an expert to be certain. Wish I'd known about this question yesterday, as I was in the preseason refresher seminar for on course officials with the CGA, and we have some VERY sharp rules guys on staff.

[iacas]

Good question.

Fourputt, I already know the answer. Find out for yourself, but I was just having some fun with the half-eaten apple ruling.

Not everything or everyone is super serious all the time.

[Fourputt]

Fourputt, I already know the answer. Find out for yourself, but I was just having some fun with the half-eaten apple ruling.

But the rules are serious business!!!

I do have the answer, I was just too lazy to look up the reference earlier.

23/1 When Loose Impediment Transformed into Obstruction Loose impediments may be transformed into obstructions through processes of construction or manufacturing. For example, a log (loose impediment) that has been split and had legs attached has been changed by construction into a bench (obstruction); or a piece of wood (loose impediment) becomes an obstruction when manufactured into a charcoal briquette. (Revised)

Your candied apple would be an obstruction, in my humble opinion.

[iacas]

Your candied apple would be an obstruction, in my humble opinion.

Yes it would... but what if it was made by the forest children? Do indigenous wild people have the capacity to "manufacture" or "construct" under the Rules of Golf?

[Fourputt]

Yes it would... but what if it was made by the forest children? Do indigenous wild people have the capacity to "manufacture" or "construct" under the Rules of Golf?

The term "manufactured" doesn't discriminate by race, creed, color, or tree of birth. So yes, it doesn't matter if it was made in the Kraft kitchens or even by a semi-mythical forest elf.

[iacas]

The term "manufactured" doesn't discriminate by race, creed, color, or tree of birth. So yes, it doesn't matter if it was made in the Kraft kitchens or even by a semi-mythical forest elf.

They're not mythical. The guy who always licks his golf balls to clean them says that he sees them every time he plays after the grounds crew sprays that green foamy chemical on the putting greens...