If you could change ONE rule, what would it be?

[Q.Q.Quillume]

On a thread about Garcia being disqualified for signing a scorecard with a lower score than he actually made, one Sand Trap poster said: "It's a stupid rule and a stupid reason to be disqualified."

Although I do not agree with the poster, it got me to wondering what single rule Sand Trap members might like to see changed -- if they could change just one?

Or would they not like to see any rule changed?

[gotgolf?]

shorts! I want to wear shorts!

[Dyna]

Golf appears to have a number of rules which are archaic & need to be either eliminated or toned down. The one that got Sergio DQ'd is obviously one of them. Everyone knows what his actual score was, signing his card with the mistake that Boo wrote down wouldn't change his score.

I'm not a Sergio fan by any means but that is a stupid & ridiculous reason to be tossed out of a tournament.

[ILLZ]

My friends and I sometimes go out at 7:00 and play 4 hole tournaments in which you can add the "hand wedge" to your bag. You have the option to throw the ball, overhand or underhand, from anywhere you want instead of hitting it with a club. It's very fun. Basically chipping isn't needed, and sand traps are completely useless. The real fun thing that we found is that there's a thin line between what you should actually putt and what you should try to roll in with your hand. About 6 feet seems to be the threshold where putting the ball makes more sense. It's surprisingly hard to roll a ball into the hole with your hand from 6 feet. I suggest trying this sometime, especially if you have friends that are really bad at golf.

[iacas]

Golf appears to have a number of rules which are archaic & need to be either eliminated or toned down. The one that got Sergio DQ'd is obviously one of them. Everyone knows what his actual score was, signing his card with the mistake that Boo wrote down wouldn't change his score.

Yes, please, let's remove personal responsibility from the game. That'll help things a lot.

I wouldn't remove any rules. The only ones I'd tweak might involve what is and isn't a loose impediment, what can be moved when, when you get free drops (burrowing animal hole, dung or castoff, but not a big pile of dead Japanese Beetles?). For example, there are different rules for an apple in a bunker depending on whether it has a bite taken out of it or not. Though, on the whole, those rules come up so infrequently it may not be worth the effort to simplify them, and "play the ball as it lies" is always a viable option. P.S. Perhaps I'd eliminate the idea of having two kinds of water hazards. Rarely these days does someone take relief on the opposite side of a lateral hazard as you're allowed to under the rules.

[Soup Fan]

Simple. Add 2 to the stroke allotments for every hole. Par 3 becomes Par 5. Par 4 becomes Par 6. Par 5 becomes Par 7.

Suddenly I am a pretty good golfer!

[Dent]

Even simpler, dont get penalty strokes for lost balls.


i know everyones reply to this: "then dont lose your ball"

Easier said than done.

[lamebums]

Ball Lost or OB - Drop a ball nearest it went out or was last seen - one stroke penalty. Not stroke and distance. It also helps with pace of play for the millions of ordinary golfers out there, and they can still be within the rules.

[TheNextBen]

Give me two serves on every tee like in Tennis.

[BluesMan]

Give me two serves on every tee like in Tennis.

Now that would be amazing!

I would probably change the rule about a ball going OB. Just allow someone to drop it at the point of exit. Would save so much time. A lost ball is a different case, because its open to cheating, while as OB would save time and not change the game. It would be like a water hazard.

[hjimzaf]

if you hit the fairway, you shouldn't be penalized if your ball lands in a divot. You should be allowed to move it without penalty.

[iacas]

if you hit the fairway, you shouldn't be penalized if your ball lands in a divot. You should be allowed to move it without penalty.

And who gets to judge what a "divot" is? Cuz heck, if that's the rule, my ball's going to find an awful lot of divots.

[Dyna]

Yes, please, let's remove personal responsibility from the game. That'll help things a lot.

The scoring for the PGA tour is up on the boards & the tv for the entire world to see. It's not like anyone would gain an advantage by signing an incorrect scorecard. I can see the rule making sense 60-70+ years ago but now days the whole signing of the scorecard is silly.

if you hit the fairway, you shouldn't be penalized if your ball lands in a divot. You should be allowed to move it without penalty.

I landed in 1 today that my ball was literally completely below the surface of the surrounding dirt. The only way i could have hit was to dig an even deeper divot into hard packed soil. I elected to pick it up out of the hole & place it next to it. I don't play 100% PGA rules & don't feel the least bit guilty about it.

[flap]

I would change the 14 club rule.The damn game is hard enough let swing what I want when I want to.If I cant hit 14 why not try 17?Maybe I will find one I can hit.But here is the caveat,if you have more than 14 you must carry your own bag!!!

[iacas]

The scoring for the PGA tour is up on the boards & the tv for the entire world to see. It's not like anyone would gain an advantage by signing an incorrect scorecard.

That has nothing to do with what I said.

I landed in 1 today that my ball was literally completely below the surface of the surrounding dirt. The only way i could have hit was to dig an even deeper divot into hard packed soil. I elected to pick it up out of the hole & place it next to it. I don't play 100% PGA rules & don't feel the least bit guilty about it.

They're not "PGA Rules." They're the USGA rules, and if you don't play by the rules and brag about it, that says plenty about you.

Ball in divot = "rub of the green." Live with it. The times you get good breaks, like a ball sitting up in the rough, do you "correct" that situation too? Do you push your ball down into the rough, move it onto the hardpan instead of the tuft of grass your ball found, throw balls back into trees when they kick out, etc.? I'm going to guess... no.

[Thrdroc]

At first I thought that changing the OB rules would be ideal with just dropping at the point which the ball goes out but then that doesn't really penalize the big hitters. They can walk up, hit their huge slice 270 yards, be 80 out, pitch up and putt in for a par. The course I played a lot was only stakes on 2 holes. Your scores go down too much for not dropping where the ball went out.

The only rule i would change is being able to clean your ball on the fringe. How many times do you have a big chunk of dirt on your ball and the pin is well with in putting range but you wont make it because of the dirt.

[golfchief]

I would probably change the rule about a ball going OB. Just allow someone to drop it at the point of exit. Would save so much time. A lost ball is a different case, because its open to cheating, while as OB would save time and not change the game. It would be like a water hazard.

Many people already play that way but seem to think there ball went alot closer to the green than it did.

Ball goes out 80 yrds from the tee over the trees and you can still see it over the trees 200 yrds from the tee and that's were they want to drop it.

[Guest ShadowXOR]

I need to read a rule book apparently. I know the basics but I have never heard of a lot of the rules people are mentioning here. Some of them sound pretty stupid...