BIZARRE hole-in-one! Or not?

[saevel25]

IT is a wierd situation, because i think most people know the rule that if your ball is hit by another ball you have to replace it. But i think they just assume thats if it doesn't go into the hole.

[RJ32S]

Somewhat off topic, but there is a gentleman in my office I always talk golf with.   We BS all the time about where we play, equipment, the tour, etc....    He said he plays to a 9.....

Well, about a month ago a mutual friend in his office invited me to play with them and I ended up sharing a cart with said gentlemen...   He shot a 96....

It was embarrassing for him, and me.  Nobody cares if you're a 1 or 30, just be honest if you choose to identify yourself.   Golf is a game, and games are supposed to be fun.

Originally Posted by funkyfred72

Shorty had it right, "but when they claim to have a "handicap" it just riles me a bit because you know damn well it isn't genuine."

[rustyredcab]

Originally Posted by yatzr

I could see someone questioning it since the ball went in the hole.  Isn't there a rule that says once the ball goes in the hole, the hole is done and no more strokes can be taken?  I think I remember reading that rule applies in cases where you declare a lost ball, but your original was in the hole.  So I don't think it's that unrealistic to question the ruling in this scenario.

Some rules sometimes seem silly. But the overall game makes sense. Your ball cannot end up in the hole illegally and thus end the hole without penalty. In the other thread about lost balls and provisionals, the ball ended up in the hole without penalties and was not known to be in the hole so all the stuff that happened after did not happen. If getting your ball in the hole eliminated penalties that may have occurred in the process of getting it intro the hole, then we could all just pick up our balls and drop them in the hole. In the OP case, if an opponent had picked up the ball and tossed it in the hole, would the OPer think that was a hole-in-one too? I can see someone questioning but unlikely for someone that plays to a single digit handicap.

[mirv]

the "replace the ball in it's original spot if it's been moved" rule is lost on a lot of people that i play with.  in the past month alone i've explained that rule probably half a dozen times, and in point of fact, most of the people i've had to tell were higher handicaps.

[mirv]

Originally Posted by RJ32S

Somewhat off topic, but there is a gentleman in my office I always talk golf with.   We BS all the time about where we play, equipment, the tour, etc....    He said he plays to a 9.....

Well, about a month ago a mutual friend in his office invited me to play with them and I ended up sharing a cart with said gentlemen...   He shot a 96....

It was embarrassing for him, and me.  Nobody cares if you're a 1 or 30, just be honest if you choose to identify yourself.   Golf is a game, and games are supposed to be fun.

i actually avoid telling people what my handicap is.  when i'm on, i'm on, and when i'm not, brother, i'm really NOT.  i can shoot an 88 just as easily as i can shoot a 74 it seems like, so to avoid embarrassing myself by saying "i'm about a 6 handicap" and then shooting 16 or 18 over par, i give a broad estimate of my game.

"what do you usually shoot?"

"ehh... depends on if i'm having a good day or not.  usually somewhere between 75 and 85."  that way if i blow up and shoot 88, i'm still pretty close to my advertised game.  and if i somehow manage a 72, that's reasonably close to my assessment as well.

[Grumpter]

Quote:

the "replace the ball in it's original spot if it's been moved" rule is lost on a lot of people that i play with.  in the past month alone i've explained that rule probably half a dozen times, and in point of fact, most of the people i've had to tell were higher handicaps.

Do you play with a lot of people that don't mark their balls on the green or something? In 30 years of playing I have only come across this situation (one players ball hitting another palyers) a handful of times.

[rustyredcab]

I find guys do not always wait for a player to mark if his ball is out of the expected play area and beyond the hole. As a result, I've seen balls touch about once a month for years. Happened last week -- two guys just near the green, first one runs it past the hole 15 feet -- not a good shot. Next guy plays and hits the same shot. The balls kiss. First ball is replaced and all move on.

Quote:

Do you play with a lot of people that don't mark their balls on the green or something?

[Grumpter]

Quote:

I find guys do not always wait for a player to mark if his ball is out of the expected play area and beyond the hole. As a result, I've seen balls touch about once a month for years. Happened last week -- two guys just near the green, first one runs it past the hole 15 feet -- not a good shot. Next guy plays and hits the same shot. The balls kiss. First ball is replaced and all move on.

Yeah I play with the same type of players and I do the same thing myself as I appreciate "ready golf". Sometimes it's even when the ball is close to the path the chipper will be hitting. A lot of times I'm playing with guys who aren't the best players and I still don't see one players ball hit another often enough to call infrequently. Not saying it doesn't happen to you as often as you say. I'm just putting in my experience. Not sure why it differs so vastly.

[mdl]

The rant that the original question makes his 7 HC a joke is so dumb.  I happen to know this ruling cause of this board, but my best golf buddy, who fluctuates around a 9-10 HC and has been as low as an 8, would have no idea on this ruling.  He plays exactly by the rules, takes his full OB penalty and re-hits, no foot wedges, no 2 foot gimmes, fully by the rules.  These esoteric rules where you run into them rarely, he has no idea.  Stop taking yourself so seriously!

Also, on the 9 handicap hitting 96 being embarrassing for him story, that could just be an off day.  Usually you can tell from the swing whether the 9 was a vanity cap or it's an off day for a real 9, but you never know.  I'm at 9.8 right now and I've played 3 of my last 13 rounds in the 90s, one at a 98.  We all have off days...

[rustyredcab]

Quote:

Not sure why it differs so vastly.

Perhaps my groups stink more than yours. We play with guys who have all the shots -- including some awful ones.  Handicaps range from 5 - 25. :)

We almost always mark if the ball "in the way" would hurt the result.

[Shorty]

Originally Posted by mdl

my best golf buddy, who fluctuates around a 9-10 HC and has been as low as an 8, would have no idea on this ruling.  He plays exactly by the rules, takes his full OB penalty and re-hits, no foot wedges, no 2 foot gimmes, fully by the rules.  These esoteric rules where you run into them rarely, he has no idea.  Stop taking yourself so seriously!

So...if your buddy was playing with a couple of 3 markers, and his ball was knocked in the hole by one of theirs, he'd be saying to them "I think I just had an ace!" They'd look at him as if he was a complete moron.

The rule pertaining to balls being replaced is hardly an esoteric one.  I've seen balls replaced on the green several times in the last few weeks.

[Teamanglerx]

I am not sure of the rule but I think it would be a hole in one.  It is similar to the situation of where you ball is sitting on the edge of the cup and gets blown in/falls in.  As long as you have not addressed the ball it plays where it lies or in this case, the hole ends with the ball in the cup after 1 shot.

[TheGeekGolfer]

In my 25+ years of golf this has happened EXACTLY ONCE.  I knew the rule...why...because you ask my friends and more times than not I will know the rules to the game I am playing.  But, I could see it where someone has alot of natural ability and is 'about a 7' HC and has never encountered this situation before.  Take a chill pill!

[sacm3bill]

Originally Posted by Teamanglerx

I am not sure of the rule but I think it would be a hole in one.  It is similar to the situation of where you ball is sitting on the edge of the cup and gets blown in/falls in.  As long as you have not addressed the ball it plays where it lies or in this case, the hole ends with the ball in the cup after 1 shot.

First, it's been clearly stated in this thread that it is not a hole-in-one. The ball gets placed back where it was.

Second, you're wrong about the other situation as well: If the ball is on the edge of the cup as a result of your stoke, you have ten seconds after walking there for it to drop. It has nothing to do with whether you've addressed it. (If you did address it and it fell in that would be a penalty stroke and you'd replace, but that's a different rule than what you're talking about.)  If it falls in before 10 seconds, you've holed with the last shot. If it falls in after that, it's holed with the last shot and you add a penalty stroke.

Please don't post guesses about the rules. More importantly, don't post incorrect statements about the rules. If you'd like to research and then post, that's great - you can find the answers here: http://www.usga.org.

[sean_miller]

I golfed regularly last year with a guy claiming to be about 4. His short game, and especially putting, backed this up. His habitual fluffed lies (preferred lies - aka cheating) did not. Anyway, during one round I had an unplayable lie and dropped my ball about 75 yards behind the grove of trees I was stymied in. He claimed I wasn't entitled to the drop (I did add the penalty stroke and dropped on line with the pin and my ball - it's not rocket science) since I could get a club on the ball. WTF? We don't play much any more.

[Vidocq]

Shorty was a bit abrupt, perhaps, but correct.

I'm a high handicapper but want tp play correctly and have tried to learn the rules.  Hard to imagine a true 7 not knowing the rules.

[LankyLefty]

Act your age, not your handicap.

[Boyder]

How can someone's "handicap" reflect on their total and complete knowledge of the game? We see pros every week calling in officials to get rulings or being DQ'd for making bad rules decisions and they have handicaps we all dream of having ...

BTW - my only handicap is my golf swing (and my putting!), but I feel I know the basic rules of the game as well as anyone ....

and to answer the ORIGINAL post - that's not a hole in one, the ball that was hit gets placed back as close to its original position as possible.

Still can't understand how a thread like this can get so far off topic ... I find it irritating and petty. Just my 2 cents.