Touching the ball with a club

[golfingal]

Most everyone knows that if you waggle and knock a ball off a tee before actually swinging, it's no penalty.

But what if one of these things happens?

1.   Waggle/address in fairway - touch ball before ever making a stroke, it oscillates but doesn't move.  (Pretty sure no penalty)

2.   Waggle/address in fairway - touch ball before ever making a stroke, it does move.  (I think this is no different than causing a ball to move on a putting green at address)

3.   Walking near your ball and accidentally bump and move ball with a club.  oops

Rule 18-2 states -    " touches it purposely (except with a club in the act of addressing the ball)"

http://www.usga.org/Rule-Books/Rules-of-Golf/Rule-18/

But both scenarios 2 & 3 are accidental - not "purposely".

Still - I think BOTH 2 & 3 are penalties, regardless.

More interesting - if you read the USGA rule linked above - it says it's 1 stroke.

But then - at the bottom that section - it says -

*PENALTY FOR BREACH OF RULE:

Match play – Loss of hole; Stroke play – Two strokes.

So - what's the deal?

[iacas]

You left out "or causes the ball to move." Touching the ball and it not moving is not the same as causing the ball to move. If the ball moves while it is in play at the player's doing (or his caddie, and there are obviously exceptions like when marking the ball), it's a penalty.

The "purposeful" nature of 2 and 3 are irrelevant. The ball moved. The penalty is assessed in both cases.

[Fourputt]

Originally Posted by golfingal

Most everyone knows that if you waggle and knock a ball off a tee before actually swinging, it's no penalty.

But what if one of these things happens?

1.   Waggle/address in fairway - touch ball before ever making a stroke, it oscillates but doesn't move.  (Pretty sure no penalty)

2.   Waggle/address in fairway - touch ball before ever making a stroke, it does move.  (I think this is no different than causing a ball to move on a putting green at address)

3.   Walking near your ball and accidentally bump and move ball with a club.  oops

Rule 18-2 states -    "touches it purposely (except with a club in the act of addressing the ball)"

http://www.usga.org/Rule-Books/Rules-of-Golf/Rule-18/

But both scenarios 2 & 3 are accidental - not "purposely".

Still - I think BOTH 2 & 3 are penalties, regardless.

More interesting - if you read the USGA rule linked above - it says it's 1 stroke.

But then - at the bottom that section - it says -

*PENALTY FOR BREACH OF RULE:

Match play – Loss of hole; Stroke play – Two strokes.

So - what's the deal?

The deal is if you fail to replace the ball after causing it to move, the one stroke penalty is cancelled and a two stroke penalty is imposed for playing from a wrong place when Rule 18-2 requires it to be replaced.  One stroke if you replace it, two strokes if you don't.