How adamant are you about enforcing the rules of golf on yourself, and others in your group?

[rustyredcab]

Normally play a very small money game (two points possible per hole and 50 cents per point -- low net and low total). But alas, it is a game. So, you can do whatever you want as long as your team looses high ball. Don't want to drive back to the tee box when you discover that your ball is OB? Take a max score on the hole for the game and hit from wherever you wish. Need a ruling? I'm happy to help you know your options and let you choose how to proceed. Land in a divot? Bad break that means you play it where you found it. Don't want to risk losing your ball because you can't clear the water out of that divot? Roll it if you wish but your team looses total. With ESC, your handicap with be the same if you get an eight or a ten.

As for myself, I try and play by the rules as I understand them (which is pretty well but not perfect). There is one major exception that carries over from 20 years of a regular group. You have the option to hit two balls off the first tee and you get your choice. "Hit two choose one" is a violation of the rules but is here to stay in my regular group. (Let the ridicule begin!)

We also play the local rules of the course -- like what is and is not a lateral water hazard and drop areas ahead of where the ball lands in the water...

[timabe]

Good thread.  Like others, I succumb to the realities of public course play and rarely do the walk of shame back to the tee because my ball is lost somewhere in a mountain of leaves.  Otherwise, I play it pretty straight and dread the times I have to make a judgement call (like when a pond that is ALWAYS staked red is suddenly missing it's stakes!).

I have a close friend who is an Englishman, and he is hard-core on the rules.  He has made me re-tee a couple of times because my tee was an inch in front of the tees (you know how on public golf courses the tees often end up cockeyed by the end of the day).  He is a pleasure to play with, and I always learn something new about the rules that I didn't know before.  I generally play match play with him so I can easily concede a hole or a short putt to him in order to keep pace.  He's always shocked when I give him a breaking two footer to halve the hole, but I'm always VERY aware of the group behind me and, if they are waiting, I generally concede the short ones.  If we played stroke play we would have a hard time keeping up, but match play it works perfectly and is a lot of fun!

[Yukari]

I play by rules and often hit a provisional ball if it is any where near tall grass.

When I am in a tournament, I call on my opponents if they breach a rule.  In fact, just a month ago, I had to call penalty stroke on a competitor for grounding his club in a hazard.  He didn't know the rules, but I told him he had to assess a penalty stroke for grounding his clubs in a hazard.

If I am playing with strangers, which is often as I go out as a single during weekends since my buddies can't/won't play early in the morning, I don't call any penalties on them since they are just there to have fun and it doesn't affect me or the "field".

[Bo the Golfer]

Originally Posted by sean_miller

The competitive rules are called the Rules of Golf. The other ones are called "not playing by the Rules of Golf but not too many other people on the course today are either so who cares?!?"

There's a book out by the USGA called Not Playing by the Rules of Golf? Learn something new everyday.

[sean_miller]

Originally Posted by Bo the Golfer

Quote:

Originally Posted by sean_miller

The competitive rules are called the Rules of Golf. The other ones are called "not playing by the Rules of Golf but not too many other people on the course today are either so who cares?!?"

There's a book out by the USGA called Not Playing by the Rules of Golf? Learn something new everyday.

Yeah, every sport has one. It's also known as, "there's a rule book now?", "relax buddy, we're not playing in the US Open", "the course is backing up - you don't have to look for the full 5 minutes every time, just drop another one and let's go", and of course, "no we are not driving back there so you can tee off under pressure and force us to repeat this gong show again - just drop another one if you know what's good for you."