Golf ball exploded into 100 pieces. What's the ruling

[Bahlahkay]

My friend cranked one dead center into a tree and we spent a good 5 minutes looking for it until we noticed all these little white pieces on the ground at the trees base haha.

whats the ruling?

Does he get a penalty?

Where does he drop from?

[Missouri Swede]

Can he identify part of the ball?  I see fragments from mowers running over golf balls, so the pieces might not be his ball, so sounds like a lost ball unless he can identify it.

Return to point of previous stroke, play from there.  Previous stroke counts, and add one penalty stroke.

[iacas]

23 minutes ago, Bahlahkay said:

My friend cranked one dead center into a tree and we spent a good 5 minutes looking for it until we noticed all these little white pieces on the ground at the trees base haha.

whats the ruling?

https://www.usga.org/RulesFAQ/rules_answer.asp?FAQidx=17&Rule=5

Quote

Rule 5-3 - Ball Breaks into Pieces

Q.Josh played a stroke from the teeing ground and the ball broke into pieces. What must he do?

A.Josh must cancel and replay the stroke from the teeing ground.

http://www.usga.org/rules/rules-and-decisions.html#!rule-05,5-3

Quote

If a ball breaks into pieces as a result of a stroke, the stroke is canceled and the player must play a ball, without penalty, as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was played (see Rule 20-5).

This assumes it's his ball, of course. If it's lost, then @Missouri Swede has it right.

I will say I've never heard of a ball (not the exploding type prank balls) exploding into a ton of pieces.

[Groucho Valentine]

Ive seen a ball crack and split as a result of a stroke, but never explode... weird. 

[Bahlahkay]

36 minutes ago, Missouri Swede said:

Can he identify part of the ball?  I see fragments from mowers running over golf balls, so the pieces might not be his ball, so sounds like a lost ball unless he can identify it.

Return to point of previous stroke, play from there.  Previous stroke counts, and add one penalty stroke.

He was using a wood and It was like 30 yards in front of us. Tree standing by it self with open area around it.  I mean he hit the dead freaking center of it to where it couldn't bounce off into another direction.

[shanksalot]

If it broke into 100 pieces you must find all 100 and put them together. Then he must identify the ball. If it is indeed his ball you must tape it together and drop two club lengths from the tree no closer to the hole. No penalty. Just kidding of course. I wanted to put some levity into this thread. 

1 hour ago, Groucho Valentine said:

Ive seen a ball crack and split as a result of a stroke, but never explode... weird. 

 I have only it was the old exploding ball trick where the ball explodes into a cloud of white powder. 

[Patch]

6 hours ago, shanksalot said:

If it broke into 100 pieces you must find all 100 and put them together. Then he must identify the ball. If it is indeed his ball you must tape it together and drop two club lengths from the tree no closer to the hole. No penalty. Just kidding of course. I wanted to put some levity into this thread. 

 I have only it was the old exploding ball trick where the ball explodes into a cloud of white powder. 

What type of tape? USGA approved, or just regular duct tape? 

[Papa Steve 55]

Play the biggest piece.

[woodzie264]

8 minutes ago, Papa Steve 55 said:

Play the biggest piece.

hahaha - I love this forum

[Fourputt]

4 hours ago, woodzie264 said:

hahaha - I love this forum

 

4 hours ago, Papa Steve 55 said:

Play the biggest piece.

The rule used to read that you played your next stroke after a drop at the point where the largest piece ended up.  

[Hardspoon]

17 minutes ago, Fourputt said:

The rule used to read that you played your next stroke after a drop at the point where the largest piece ended up.  

When was it changed?

That rule would be amazing, if only for the fun it would provoke if a tournament player called a rules official over to determine which piece of his ball was larger.

[Fourputt]

1 hour ago, Hardspoon said:

When was it changed?

That rule would be amazing, if only for the fun it would provoke if a tournament player called a rules official over to determine which piece of his ball was larger.

Not certain exactly when it was changed, but this is from the 1899 version for the R&A:

Quote

34.  If a ball split into separate pieces, another ball may be put down where the largest portion lies, or if two pieces are apparently of equal size, it may be put where either piece lies, at the option of the player

In the 1925 version:

Quote

If a ball split into separate pieces, another ball may be dropped where any piece lies.

The rule was dropped between 1925 and 1933.  1933 version is similar to today:

Quote

Ball Unfit for Play 
If a ball be so damaged as to be unfit for play, the player may change it on intimating to his opponent his intention to do so.

 

[jamo]

9 hours ago, Fourputt said:

Not certain exactly when it was changed, but this is from the 1899 version for the R&A:

In the 1925 version:

The rule was dropped between 1925 and 1933.  1933 version is similar to today:

 

I'd imagine this was a much more common issue back in the '30s. 

[Fourputt]

9 hours ago, jamo said:

I'd imagine this was a much more common issue back in the '30s. 

I've see a lot of cheap 2 piece balls broken into pieces when played in colder weather.  They are mostly just a plastic core with a plastic cover, and they can become brittle at temps below 45°.

[Hacker James]

On 12/29/2016 at 7:18 AM, jamo said:

I'd imagine this was a much more common issue back in the '30s. 

yah, just can't trust those gutta percha or featheries.

[Buckeyebowman]

On 12/29/2016 at 10:18 AM, jamo said:

I'd imagine this was a much more common issue back in the '30s. 

 

On 12/29/2016 at 7:25 PM, Fourputt said:

I've see a lot of cheap 2 piece balls broken into pieces when played in colder weather.  They are mostly just a plastic core with a plastic cover, and they can become brittle at temps below 45°.

My thoughts exactly! The same phenomenon came back into play when the "modern" two and three piece balls were introduced. My brother had one split in half on him on a tee shot, and either half went whizzing off in opposite directions! We managed to find one half of the ball, which was just a solid bluish core with a cover around it. Doesn't happen very much nowdays, but I'm sure it still does occasionally. And it wasn't cold, it was mid-Summer!