Did Jordan Spieth violate the rules at Doral?

[Rulesman]

3 hours ago, Asheville said:

 If your intent is to add moisture to the clubface in anticipation of your next stroke, then you're in breach. 

Speith wasn't doing anything to the face of the club. He was wetting the sole. That does not affect the movement of the ball.

However, it may or may not alter the characteristics. It seems the jury is out on that. 

Edited March 6, 2016 by Rulesman

[sjduffers]

The comments on the web site linked in the OP are hilariously misinformed and confusing so many things!  Read them for a good laugh.

Jordan does not modify the face of the club in any way, which is where a foreign substance can't be added (although it's still ok to clean the face of a club and thereby adding water or at least moisture). Putters and other clubs can have foreign substance added to them, such as lead tape. It's modifying the face that is not allowed, even with for example impact tape (useful in practice).

Jordan is adding moisture to the bottom of the putter just so it doesn't slide uncontrollably when he sets it down at address, prior to the stroke. He can achieve the exact same effect by "cleaning" the club with a wet towel, so this licking should be allowed and it has zero effect on the stroke itself, as the putter does not touch the ground during the stroke (when it does, the putt clearly does not work as intended!).

At least, that's my 20,000ft view of the question.

[saevel25]

2 minutes ago, sjduffers said:

Jordan does not modify the face of the club in any way, which is where a foreign substance can't be added (although it's still ok to clean the face of a club and thereby adding water or at least moisture). Putters and other clubs can have foreign substance added to them, such as lead tape. It's modifying the face that is not allowed, even with for example impact tape (useful in practice).

It's not as simple as that. First you must start the round with the lead tape on you can not keep modifying the club during the round. 

Quote

4-2/0.5 Lead Tape Applied to Clubhead or Shaft During Round
Q.With regard to Decision 4-1/4, may a player remove, add or alter lead tape during a round?

A.No. However, lead tape that becomes detached from the club in the normal course of play may be placed back onto the club in the same location. If the lead tape will not remain on the club in the same location, new tape may be used. Every effort should be made to restore the club, as nearly as possible, to its previous condition. Alternatively, the club may be used in its damaged state (without the lead tape) for the remainder of the round (Rule 4-3a).

If the tape is altered or damaged other than in the normal course of play, the club may not be used for the remainder of the round, under penalty of disqualification (see Rules 4-2a and 4-3).

To me the intent is important. He's trying to make the club perform differently based on the fact he's playing on Bermuda Grass. Also, he's modifying the club during the round. I would say this would be similar to if he decided during the round he wanted lead tap on the driver because he didn't want it to cut as much on the hole. 

[Rulesman]

1 hour ago, saevel25 said:

It's not as simple as that. First you must start the round with the lead tape on you can not keep modifying the club during the round. 

To me the intent is important. He's trying to make the club perform differently based on the fact he's playing on Bermuda Grass. Also, he's modifying the club during the round. I would say this would be similar to if he decided during the round he wanted lead tap on the driver because he didn't want it to cut as much on the hole. 

So if his club sole was covered in mud and causing the club to catch on the ground, you are saying he couldn't clean it?

[sjduffers]

1 hour ago, saevel25 said:

It's not as simple as that. First you must start the round with the lead tape on you can not keep modifying the club during the round. 

To me the intent is important. He's trying to make the club perform differently based on the fact he's playing on Bermuda Grass. Also, he's modifying the club during the round. I would say this would be similar to if he decided during the round he wanted lead tap on the driver because he didn't want it to cut as much on the hole. 

Your point about modifying during the round is valid, of course. However, adding water or moisture via cleaning is ok, yet by other means it wouldn't be. That's inconsistent.

Also, I dispute that he is trying to get the club to "perform" differently, and it's not just Bermuda grass: it's for any grass that has shininess (grain) where it becomes slippery at address. It's not the performance of the club that is affected, it's the control he has on the club while sliding it into position during the address phase.

Without this, he may have to put the club a little bit (maybe 1/8 of an inch?) further away from the ball, lest a slip would cause the putter to touch the ball and cause a penalty stroke. That's what I do: I slide my putter in position maybe an inch away from the ball, and I see Tour players slide it in very, very close to the ball. I don't really think it makes a difference in the (performance of the) stroke, but there you have it: it's probably all 99% mental.

It's a good question though. 

[saevel25]

3 minutes ago, sjduffers said:

Your point about modifying during the round is valid, of course. However, adding water or moisture via cleaning is ok, yet by other means it wouldn't be. That's inconsistent.

His intent is not to clean. It's to allow him to feel more comfortable when grounding the club on Bermuda grass. I put that is if he wanted to put lead tape on a driver because the hole curved right and he didn't want to lose the ball left. 

I still think it's probably something he shouldn't be doing. I don't think it's something that is inline with the intent of the rules of golf. 

[sjduffers]

1 hour ago, saevel25 said:

His intent is not to clean. It's to allow him to feel more comfortable when grounding the club on Bermuda grass. I put that is if he wanted to put lead tape on a driver because the hole curved right and he didn't want to lose the ball left. 

I still think it's probably something he shouldn't be doing. I don't think it's something that is inline with the intent of the rules of golf. 

Since I think that nearly all of this is psychological and not real (i doubt there is any real advantage gained by grounding the putter a small fraction of an inch closer to the ball), he could make himself more "comfortable", a psychological thing in this context, simply by cleaning the club with the intent of making himself relax (no different than breathing out or chewing gum, or whatever strike your fancy to relax), and there is nothing anyone can and would say about it, as it is well within the rules, and he was told as much by the USGA/PGA official.

[Dave325]

8 hours ago, Asheville said:

Dave, your seeing the application of an "intent" based Rule. (Some Rules have this built in, but others don't.)

It's always okay to wipe the club dry, but never to wipe it "wet."

So based on this... If a player already has a wet club from the dew, and fails to wipe it off before the next stroke, is he penalized?

[Howling Coyote]

This is a weird question and does not make sense.  First as jam says:

19 hours ago, jamo said:

It sounds like Spieth doesn't actually do this during tournament rounds, but I'm still a bit confused as to what he actually does and why he does it. When the greens are "shiny," does that mean they're wet and dewy, or so dry they're shiny?

And he wants more traction? Isn't the putter only touching the ground for the first few degrees as he swings it back?

Second: Wetting the putter should make it more slippery so it does not make sense.

Third: Slippery should be a good thing, not a bad thing?

Fourth: The only time I see him use the putter, where if it were to slip it would be a bad thing, is when he is reading the green.  He tends to lean heavily on the putter like a cane.

Maybe he is talking about the traction between the putter face and ball??

When I putt, during setup my putter does not touch the green, but is off the green by about the thickness of a quarter.  Is this wrong?  Should the putter be touching the ground?

Edited March 7, 2016 by Howling Coyote
Added sentence.

[Fourputt]

1 hour ago, sjduffers said:

Since I think that nearly all of this is psychological and not real (i doubt there is any real advantage gained by grounding the putter a small fraction of an inch closer to the ball), he could make himself more "comfortable", a psychological thing in this context, simply by cleaning the club with the intent of making himself relax (no different than breathing out or chewing gum, or whatever strike your fancy to relax), and there is nothing anyone can and would say about it, as it is well within the rules, and he was told as much by the USGA/PGA official.

It can be argued that by deliberately making the sole less slippery to help him address the ball, he is modifying the playing characteristics of the club.  It is for this reason that the RO advised him not to do it until it can be properly ruled on.  It's entirely possible that the USGA and R&A will come back with a no foul ruling.  Since this is a question that has never come up before, there is no precedent.  I doubt that anyone ever even considered this possibility before.

53 minutes ago, Dave325 said:

So based on this... If a player already has a wet club from the dew, and fails to wipe it off before the next stroke, is he penalized?

No, he can wipe it or not as he wishes.  Encountering water in the form of rain and dew (and sometimes snow) is a natural factor in the playing of one's ball.  The only question here is the intentional act of applying it to the sole of the club.