Informing competitor of rules option

[Alan In AK]

Playing in the state senior am recently I saw that one of my opponents was mulling over what to do about an unplayable lie. I told him that one option was to take a drop on the line as far back as he wanted which was what he did. I didn't say that he should or shouldn't do that, only informed him of his options. He thanked me for reminding him of the rule after the hole. Was I in violation of rule 8?

[Robbyboy]

You were correct. In the definition of "advice", the rules state "Information on the Rules, distance or matters of public information, such as the position of hazards or the flagstick on the putting green, is not advice"

[iacas]

15 minutes ago, Robbyboy said:

You were correct. In the definition of "advice", the rules state "Information on the Rules, distance or matters of public information, such as the position of hazards or the flagstick on the putting green, is not advice"

Yup. Love it when the first answer is the right answer. Good job @Robbyboy.

[Fourputt]

24 minutes ago, AlanInAk said:

Playing in the state senior am recently I saw that one of my opponents was mulling over what to do about an unplayable lie. I told him that one option was to take a drop on the line as far back as he wanted which was what he did. I didn't say that he should or shouldn't do that, only informed him of his options. He thanked me for reminding him of the rule after the hole. Was I in violation of rule 8?

No problem.  I've done that often in tournaments.  As long as all you are doing is correctly explaining options or procedures, you are good.  If you are uncertain, or if your information was obtained someplace other than the Rules of Golf (word of mouth rules information is more often wrong than right), then it's best to to just be quiet.  If you really are certain that you have the information right, or if you have the book there to show him, then it's perfectly okay.

[DaveP043]

34 minutes ago, Alan In AK said:

Playing in the state senior am recently I saw that one of my opponents was mulling over what to do about an unplayable lie. I told him that one option was to take a drop on the line as far back as he wanted which was what he did. I didn't say that he should or shouldn't do that, only informed him of his options. 

A question that comes to my mind, perhaps @iacas or @Fourputt help with, was @Alan In AK required to provide all of the options once he started?  The way I read this at first was that he only mentioned one option.  Then in the next sentence, he mentions options plural.  If you mention only one option to a FC, I wonder if you could be viewed as leading him toward using that option.  I know, it seems rather a stretch, but it crossed my mind.

[Alan In AK]

6 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

A question that comes to my mind, perhaps @iacas or @Fourputt help with, was @Alan In AK required to provide all of the options once he started?  The way I read this at first was that he only mentioned one option.  Then in the next sentence, he mentions options plural.  If you mention only one option to a FC, I wonder if you could be viewed as leading him toward using that option.  I know, it seems rather a stretch, but it crossed my mind.

I guess to fully qualify the situation, I did tell him of the other options which was the two club lengths and going back to the original spot. I could see how if I only mentioned the one option it could be conceived as advice to some. Good point to remember in the future. 

[iacas]

7 minutes ago, Alan In AK said:

I guess to fully qualify the situation, I did tell him of the other options which was the two club lengths and going back to the original spot. I could see how if I only mentioned the one option it could be conceived as advice to some. Good point to remember in the future. 

You can't be penalized if you just say something like "Well, I know one of your options is to go back as far as you want on the line from the ball to the hole."

It's still the player's responsibility, ultimately, to know the Rules of Golf. The Rules allow a player to act incorrectly when they are told to do something by a referee or Rules Official, but often not when told something rules-related by a fellow competitor.

[DaveP043]

5 minutes ago, iacas said:

You can't be penalized if you just say something like "Well, I know one of your options is to go back as far as you want on the line from the ball to the hole."

Thanks, my question is answered.  And @Alan In AK, I thought when I read your first post completely that you probably had mentioned all of his options to him.