Johanna

Hi Dabzy and Fourputt, That's the way to play golf! In fact we tell starters to either ask if it is a Provisional Ball or advise players to play a P.B. if the tee shot goes wayward. Referees will do the same. Regards, Johanna

Hi Dabzy, Just make sure you announce your intention of playing a provisional ball off the tee. If you forget, the ball played becomes the ball in play.

There must be plenty of Marshals on the course. It amazes me that they don't warn the shouters just once and then kick them off the course for misbehaviour. The organizers should print a warning on the tickets about the etiquette for spectators.

Nothing in the rules says you may not kneel when putting, so you may. Have you tried standing on your head? the eye contact with the ball will be really good

Here's an interesting bit, copied from the R&A; Website: Ian Pattinson, Rules of Golf advisor for the BBC this year, talks about his first few days on the job. Every Referee on the course (there are 72 from 18 countries) keeps a record of the time taken by his or her group for each hole, the cumulative time for the round (against a ‘time par’) and any rulings given. Some referees also keep a score, although there is no requirement to do this. At the end of each round the Referees return their rules decisions record to David Rickman (Director of Rules and Equipment Standards for The R&A;) and there is a short de-briefing so that any issues or trends that might be relevant to the day – or might be helpful in the planning for the next day — can be discussed. Each evening after play ends, Shona McRae of The R&A;’s Rules team analyses the rules decisions and prepares a summary to help the referees know what to look out for the next day. First thing each day, I collect a copy of this from the Rules office to give me a heads up. In the first round, about a quarter of the 56 walking referees gave no rulings. The analysis shows that the rest gave a wide selection of other rulings. Free drops away from Temporary Immovable Obstructions (e.g. TV towers, grandstands etc) were taken by less than ten golfers. The summary for round two tells a different story, with nearly 40 rulings given for casual water – many in bunkers. There has been a lot of interest in the water in the bunkers. We take the view that the Championship can properly be played under the Rules of Golf and that where there is casual water in bunkers there is somewhere in the sand to drop without penalty which is not nearer the hole. So far I haven’t heard of anyone having to drop outside a bunker under a one stroke penalty. Another tell-tale sign of the benign conditions has been the fact that in two days, 156 golfers have played 5,616 holes and there have been less than twenty unplayable balls. As I am a bit of a hoarder of rules stuff, I have the records of the rulings going back to the 1995 Open and can see that unplayable balls were easily the most often “popular” rulings given in both the ’96 and ’01 Lytham Opens.

Normally you wouldn't get a free drop from such a place, but did the Local Rules on the score card mention the drain and the area immediately above it? Your fellow competitor should keep his hands off your ball, and he shouldn't drop his ball from divot holes. Each time he did so should've cost him 2 penalty strokes!

He may hit his provisional with whatever club he likes, but not until he hits it from a spot at least as far, or closer to the hole from the spot where his original may lie, does the provisional ball become the ball in play. If he does not find his original ball, the clever Alec has to add all the strokes he's made with his provisional ball to his score for the hole.

Did he use a ball to practise his wedge shots, or just swing the club ? More information is needed to give you a correct answer.

The drop should be as close as possible to the original spot. After the correct drop, the ball may roll up to two clublengths, but not nearer the hole.

From the information you have given, I think your second ball was the ball in play but you should have added 1 penalty stroke. What do you mean with a "natural area"?

That's exactly why the Ruling Bodies advise that rakes be placed outside bunkers: From the Decision Book: Miscellaneous 2 Q. Should rakes be placed in or outside bunkers? A . There is not a perfect answer for the position of rakes, but on balance it is felt there is less likelihood of an advantage or disadvantage to the player if rakes are placed outside bunkers. It may be argued that there is more likelihood of a ball being deflected into or kept out of a bunker if the rake is placed outside the bunker. It could also be argued that if the rake is in the bunker it is most unlikely that the ball will be deflected out of the bunker. However, in practice, players who leave rakes in bunkers frequently leave them at the side which tends to stop a ball rolling into the flat part of the bunker, resulting in a much more difficult shot than would otherwise have been the case. This is most prevalent at a course where the bunkers are small. When the ball comes to rest on or against a rake in the bunker and the player must proceed under Rule 24-1 , it may not be possible to replace the ball on the same spot or find a spot in the bunker which is not nearer the hole - see Decision 20-3d/2 . If rakes are left in the middle of the bunker the only way to position them is to throw them into the bunker and this causes damage to the surface. Also, if a rake is in the middle of a large bunker it is either not used or the player is obliged to rake a large area of the bunker resulting in unnecessary delay. Therefore, after considering all these aspects, it is recommended that rakes should be left outside bunkers in areas where they are least likely to affect the movement of the ball. Ultimately, it is a matter for the Committee to decide where it wishes rakes to be placed.

I agree with all Rulesman says. The problems with rakes in bunkers has led the Ruling Bodies to advise that rakes be kept outside bunkers, but greenkeepers don't like that because they have to get off their grass mowers to remove the rakes when mowing. Note that during very important tournaments like the Masters, The Open etc. a greenkeeper follows each match with a rake in his hand, so you'll see no rakes at all in- or outside bunkers during these events!

I think he meant his wife!

I agree with Zeg's answer.