Jump to content
IGNORED

Playing a Ball After a 3 Minute Search


Easytotilt
Note: This thread is 1273 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Recommended Posts

The new rules when searching for a golf ball is that you have 3 minutes to search for your ball. We had a situation today where a playing parter hit his ball in the rough and we spent longer than the allocated 3 minutes finding the ball. It wasn't to much longer literally 5 mins and we found it... It was a par 4 and in a competition. The group behind us were not on the tee box yet, and the group in front were still putting out so we weren't going anywhere. We got pulled up about it by a rules official, but our argument was that we were not affecting the pace of play as if we stopped searching at the 3 minute mark we would we just be stood there catching fly's waiting for the green to clear... So my question in this situation what  happens? Up to 3 minutes or when you are able to hit your next shot seems sensible to me thoughts?

Link to comment
Share on other sites


  • Administrator

After three minutes the ball is lost.

There is no "situation" about it. Whether you're holding up play, waiting, etc. is completely irrelevant.

What did he do to finish the hole? Had he played a provisional? Because as soon as three minutes elapsed, if he didn't play a provisional, he was required to go back to the tee. If he didn't do so, he should have been DQed as he played from a wrong place in a serious breach fashion.*

* Unless the Local Rule allowing for a player to drop up above was in effect, in which case he gets two strokes for that Local Rule and two strokes for playing a wrong ball, but not in such a way that he committed a serious breach. So even if the Local Rule was in effect, he was hitting six (one off the tee, two for the Local OB/Lost rule, and two for playing a wrong ball; laying five, hitting six).

cropped-rgfavicon.png?fit=240%2C240&ssl=

One of the most anticipated “new” Rules for 2019 was the optional Local Rule that provides an alternative to the stroke-and-distance penalty for a ball lost or out of bounds. This situa…

 

  • Like 1
  • Thumbs Up 1
  • Upvote 1

Erik J. Barzeski —  I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
Director of Instruction Golf Evolution • Owner, The Sand Trap .com • AuthorLowest Score Wins
Golf Digest "Best Young Teachers in America" 2016-17 & "Best in State" 2017-20 • WNY Section PGA Teacher of the Year 2019 :edel: :true_linkswear:

Check Out: New Topics | TST Blog | Golf Terms | Instructional Content | Analyzr | LSW | Instructional Droplets

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

8 minutes ago, Easytotilt said:

We got pulled up about it by a rules official, but our argument was that we were not affecting the pace of play as if we stopped searching at the 3 minute mark we would we just be stood there catching fly's waiting for the green to clear...

Doesn't matter, past 3 minutes the ball is lost.

 

Matt Dougherty, P.E.
 fasdfa dfdsaf 

What's in My Bag
Driver; :pxg: 0311 Gen 5,  3-Wood: 
:titleist: 917h3 ,  Hybrid:  :titleist: 915 2-Hybrid,  Irons: Sub 70 TAIII Fordged
Wedges: :edel: (52, 56, 60),  Putter: :edel:,  Ball: :snell: MTB,  Shoe: :true_linkswear:,  Rangfinder: :leupold:
Bag: :ping:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

The rules can't be applied in a haphazard fashion.  They have to be applied in the same manner in every case or they cease to be valid.  It's one thing to fudge them in a casual round, but in a competition, they are the law.

  • Upvote 1
  • Informative 1

Rick

"He who has the fastest cart will never have a bad lie."

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

  • iacas changed the title to Playing a Ball After a 3 Minute Search

Played a round this weekend and the ball was not found after 3 minutes, but was actually on the green about 4 feet past the pin. I was looking in the wrong spot.

I guess that's also considered lost?

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

  • Moderator
4 minutes ago, Lihu said:

Played a round this weekend and the ball was not found after 3 minutes, but was actually on the green about 4 feet past the pin. I was looking in the wrong spot.

I guess that's also considered lost?

I imagine you know the answer already.

Dave

:callaway: Rogue SubZero Driver

:titleist: 915F 15 Fairway, 816 H1 19 Hybrid, AP2 4 iron to PW, Vokey 52, 56, and 60 wedges, ProV1 balls 
:ping: G5i putter, B60 version
 :ping:Hoofer Bag, complete with Newport Cup logo
:footjoy::true_linkswear:, and Ashworth shoes

the only thing wrong with this car is the nut behind the wheel.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

45 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

I imagine you know the answer already.

I’d like not to imagine, because someone else identified*** the ball as his until he realized it wasn’t. So, I ended searching the wrong area where it was assumed to have been hit.

Are both balls considered lost then? Mine was misidentified and it took more than 3 minutes of other people playing to the hole for me to identify it.

Just curious, I was not scoring that particular round anyway.

***I hit it around a tree branch and was not able to see the flight nor landing.

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

  • Moderator
12 minutes ago, Lihu said:

I’d like not to imagine, because someone else identified*** the ball as his until he realized it wasn’t. So, I ended searching the wrong area where it was assumed to have been hit.

Are both balls considered lost then? Mine was misidentified and it took more than 3 minutes of other people playing to the hole for me to identify it.

Just curious, I was not scoring that particular round anyway.

***I hit it around a tree branch and was not able to see the flight nor landing.

Interesting, and you might be able to make a case under the idea of equity, but I'm not real sure.  Your ball was found promptly, but you essentially weren't allowed to identify it as yours until after time had elapsed.  Its a situation where one guy's screw-up puts you in a bad spot.  Oddly enough, if you find a ball, mistakenly identify it as yours so stop searching, you stop the "search clock".   You can resume your search and restart the clock where you left off  once you realize its not yours.   .  

Dave

:callaway: Rogue SubZero Driver

:titleist: 915F 15 Fairway, 816 H1 19 Hybrid, AP2 4 iron to PW, Vokey 52, 56, and 60 wedges, ProV1 balls 
:ping: G5i putter, B60 version
 :ping:Hoofer Bag, complete with Newport Cup logo
:footjoy::true_linkswear:, and Ashworth shoes

the only thing wrong with this car is the nut behind the wheel.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

24 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

Interesting, and you might be able to make a case under the idea of equity, but I'm not real sure.  Your ball was found promptly, but you essentially weren't allowed to identify it as yours until after time had elapsed.  Its a situation where one guy's screw-up puts you in a bad spot. 

Yeah, but again, I didn’t count this round anyway. I rarely do unless the round is “in season”. It was my shot of the day though. :-)

 

24 minutes ago, DaveP043 said:

Oddly enough, if you find a ball, mistakenly identify it as yours so stop searching, you stop the "search clock".   You can resume your search and restart the clock where you left off  once you realize its not yours.   .  

Couldn’t this lend itself to abuse in some cases?

 

All I can comment on both situation is, no wonder why tournament scores are generally higher. 

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

  • Administrator
6 minutes ago, Lihu said:

Couldn’t this lend itself to abuse in some cases?

Not really. How?

You need a good reason to suspend… like someone else saying “I found it.”

Erik J. Barzeski —  I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
Director of Instruction Golf Evolution • Owner, The Sand Trap .com • AuthorLowest Score Wins
Golf Digest "Best Young Teachers in America" 2016-17 & "Best in State" 2017-20 • WNY Section PGA Teacher of the Year 2019 :edel: :true_linkswear:

Check Out: New Topics | TST Blog | Golf Terms | Instructional Content | Analyzr | LSW | Instructional Droplets

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

Just now, iacas said:

Not really. How?

Just thinking that there’s more chances to cheat if not done “correctly”?

For instance, could it give people who cheat more opportunities to drop stray balls to stop the search clock?

7 minutes ago, iacas said:

Not really. How?

You need a good reason to suspend… like someone else saying “I found it.”

Ah, got it...

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

  • Administrator
35 minutes ago, Nutsmacker said:

Who is supposed to be keeping the clock on the 3 minutes?  Is that on the opponent or the player themselves?

Anyone can.

I look at my watch myself when I'm looking for my ball… and often look at my watch when others are looking for their balls, too.

  • Like 2

Erik J. Barzeski —  I knock a ball. It goes in a gopher hole. 🏌🏼‍♂️
Director of Instruction Golf Evolution • Owner, The Sand Trap .com • AuthorLowest Score Wins
Golf Digest "Best Young Teachers in America" 2016-17 & "Best in State" 2017-20 • WNY Section PGA Teacher of the Year 2019 :edel: :true_linkswear:

Check Out: New Topics | TST Blog | Golf Terms | Instructional Content | Analyzr | LSW | Instructional Droplets

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

This got me thinking about whether or not I had ever seen the old 5-minute rule actually enforced in my little world of c-flight players and woolly muni courses.

My lot pumps a bunch of balls into rough that can sometimes be very thick. Perhaps twice I've seen someone race back to the tee after giving up on a search. I've never seen anyone pull out a stop watch to time them and there's no doubt some of these searches exceeded five minutes.

It would definitely be a better thing to get in the habit of hitting provisional shots when we aren't sure. Maybe the newness of the rule will make some people more aware of it,  but I'm guessing this one is going to get ignored at my level just like the five-minute limit was previously.

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

22 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

This got me thinking about whether or not I had ever seen the old 5-minute rule actually enforced in my little world of c-flight players and woolly muni courses.

The C flight around me are older gents who are real sticklers for the rules 😂

 

22 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

My lot pumps a bunch of balls into rough that can sometimes be very thick. Perhaps twice I've seen someone race back to the tee after giving up on a search. I've never seen anyone pull out a stop watch to time them and there's no doubt some of these searches exceeded five minutes.

It would definitely be a better thing to get in the habit of hitting provisional shots when we aren't sure. Maybe the newness of the rule will make some people more aware of it,  but I'm guessing this one is going to get ignored at my level just like the five-minute limit was previously.

Most hit a provisional ball off the tee.

:ping:  :tmade:  :callaway:   :gamegolf:  :titleist:

TM White Smoke Big Fontana; Pro-V1
TM Rac 60 TT WS, MD2 56
Ping i20 irons U-4, CFS300
Callaway XR16 9 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S
Callaway XR16 3W 15 degree Fujikura Speeder 565 S, X2Hot Pro 20 degrees S

"I'm hitting the woods just great, but I'm having a terrible time getting out of them." ~Harry Toscano

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

35 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

This got me thinking about whether or not I had ever seen the old 5-minute rule actually enforced in my little world of c-flight players and woolly muni courses.

My lot pumps a bunch of balls into rough that can sometimes be very thick. Perhaps twice I've seen someone race back to the tee after giving up on a search. I've never seen anyone pull out a stop watch to time them and there's no doubt some of these searches exceeded five minutes.

It would definitely be a better thing to get in the habit of hitting provisional shots when we aren't sure. Maybe the newness of the rule will make some people more aware of it,  but I'm guessing this one is going to get ignored at my level just like the five-minute limit was previously. 

5 minutes is longer than you think it is. Most players will give up well before they reach 5 minutes. You'll have to look a little more closely at the clock with 3 minutes, but I don't think it's going to be that big of change. Hopefully it will encourage more people to hit provisionals.

-- Daniel

In my bag: :callaway: Paradym :callaway: Epic Flash 3.5W (16 degrees)

:callaway: Rogue Pro 3-PW :edel: SMS Wedges - V-Grind (48, 54, 58):edel: Putter

 :aimpoint:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

  • Moderator
48 minutes ago, mcanadiens said:

This got me thinking about whether or not I had ever seen the old 5-minute rule actually enforced in my little world of c-flight players and woolly muni courses.

My lot pumps a bunch of balls into rough that can sometimes be very thick. Perhaps twice I've seen someone race back to the tee after giving up on a search. I've never seen anyone pull out a stop watch to time them and there's no doubt some of these searches exceeded five minutes.

It would definitely be a better thing to get in the habit of hitting provisional shots when we aren't sure. Maybe the newness of the rule will make some people more aware of it,  but I'm guessing this one is going to get ignored at my level just like the five-minute limit was previously.

I can't say I've ever timed a search, someone (often me) will generally say that its been long enough, time to move on.  As @DeadMan says, 5 minutes is quite a long time.  With the new reduced search time, I'm planning to have my phone with me to time our searches, at least for a while until we become adjusted to the "feel" of 3 minutes.

  • Like 2
  • Upvote 1

Dave

:callaway: Rogue SubZero Driver

:titleist: 915F 15 Fairway, 816 H1 19 Hybrid, AP2 4 iron to PW, Vokey 52, 56, and 60 wedges, ProV1 balls 
:ping: G5i putter, B60 version
 :ping:Hoofer Bag, complete with Newport Cup logo
:footjoy::true_linkswear:, and Ashworth shoes

the only thing wrong with this car is the nut behind the wheel.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Awards, Achievements, and Accolades

Note: This thread is 1273 days old. We appreciate that you found this thread instead of starting a new one, but if you plan to post here please make sure it's still relevant. If not, please start a new topic. Thank you!

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now


  • Want to join this community?

    We'd love to have you!

    Sign Up
  • TST Partners

    TourStriker PlaneMate
    Golfer's Journal
    ShotScope
    The Stack System
    FlightScope Mevo
    Direct: Mevo, Mevo+, and Pro Package.

    Coupon Codes (save 10-15%): "IACAS" for Mevo/Stack, "IACASPLUS" for Mevo+/Pro Package, and "THESANDTRAP" for ShotScope.
  • Posts

    • Day 85 - Played 9. Driver was solid, approach shots were pushed, chipping/pitching was better, putting was rough. 
    • Day 514, March 28, 2024 Quick ten minutes while waiting for the wife to come home for our trip.
    • Day 262: did a stack session. Worked on rehearsal swings during rest breaks. 
    • It's been a little more than a year since I can last remember hitting golf balls and today I just got my second cortisone injection in 11 months. I thought maybe shortly after the first injection I was going to be able to start playing again with therapy but the pain while doing my backswing past halfway just didn't subside like just lifting my hands up in the air did. So today the Orthopedic surgeon put more in the backside of the shoulder than before to address the tendon more. I'm going to try therapy for another 3 months and if I  can't swing the club without pain then I think surgery is going to be my next option.
    • I was just down visiting family in southern California and we played a couple rounds of golf. I hit my ball into the deep rough near some tree's and my cousin's husband offered me his Sim 2 Rescue Hybrid to try out. And I felt the same way, wow! I loved it, it also had a Pure DTX grip on it which I loved. As soon as I got back home, I ended up buying two used Calloway Rogue X hybrids, 3 and 5. So far I've only tested them out at the range, but I love them. They're much more forgiving than irons for me.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Welcome to TST! Signing up is free, and you'll see fewer ads and can talk with fellow golf enthusiasts! By using TST, you agree to our Terms of Use, our Privacy Policy, and our Guidelines.

The popup will be closed in 10 seconds...