Don't Be a Club Short!: Learn the New Rules of Golf 2019

By D. Tate Rich

The Rules of Golf are well-written, but inter-related and complex, requiring careful study. "Don't Be a Club Short!" offers serious golfers an alternative to the textbook method of study, and an entertaining way to learn these Rules, which incurred major changes effective 2019.

The setting is an 18-hole Four-Ball Match-Play competition. The gentlemen in this match want to win and have fun, and they want to play under the New Rules of Golf 2019. This competition is their classroom.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Jul 16, 2019
• ISBN: 9781543979435

Book preview

Tufts

The Game

A FOUR-BALL MATCH PLAY COMPETITION

THE PLAYERS ARRIVE

I’m looking forward to a little competition, says the Yank, lightly sweating after pounding a couple of buckets of balls on the practice range. What’s the game?

I’m sure Foremost will tell us, answers Yogi from a Standing Tree pose between the markers on the teeing ground. I know I don’t want to give you guys any strokes. I haven’t played in a month...and where’s TicToc?

They all look over their shoulder. TicToc is intently lining up another putt on the practice green and is now thirty seconds late for their 9:00 tee time. Foremost knows his tardiness is a violation of new R5.3 as a starting time is an exact time and does not mean any time up and until 9:01. He bites his tongue and says nothing as TicToc scrambles up to the teeing area. Hey, he thinks to himself. Give the guy a break; it’s a New Year

Are we going to toss ‘em up?, asks Foremost, knowing the answer well. No, let’s play our regular Four-Ball Match Play game says the Yank.

All players agree to this arrangement which, as usual, finds Foremost and TicToc against the Yank and Yogi.

I have an announcement to make, says Foremost.

That’s not surprising, Yogi quickly replies.

Foremost continues somewhat formally. Today, we welcome and play under the new Rules of Golf, effective this historic day in golf, January 1, 2019. Under the Terms of a Competition, the term Rules means Rules 1-24, Definitions, and Local Rules as adopted by the Committee.*

I haven’t even looked at them yet", mutters TicToc, quickly interrupting what promises to be an eloquent, but lengthy lecture.

Foremost ignores him. These new Rules not only simplify and change the game regarding aspects of play, relief, and penalties, but also, they clearly state the principles behind each particular rule and are organized so that these guiding principles present a consistent theme throughout the body of the work. And finally, they introduce an entirely new vocabulary to the game of golf.

Huh? says the Yank.

For instance, Decisions are now Interpretations; Through the Green is now the General Area; Water Hazards are now Penalty Areas. Let’s make sure we start using the correct terminology, adds Foremost. We should also know that Rules 1-20 apply to Individual play and Rules 21-24 pick-up play with Partners.

Grasping the new Rules will be challenging, but ..."

Got it says Yogi, as he observes the starter patiently tapping his watch. Foremost, can we play?

HOLE # 1

Description

The Par 5 Hole #1 is a gentle dog-leg left to a sharply-elevated green well-protected by bunkers front-left and right. The hole is bordered on the left by the Club’s practice ranges, and on the right at mid-distance by the Club Maintenance Facility, marked as Out-of-Bounds. An approach shot with errant distance or trajectory will find a bunker short or carom off a steep slope behind the green leaving an extremely difficult pitch back to the surface of the green.

On the Tee

Foremost and TicToc win the coin toss (rejecting Yogi’s earnest suggestion of two out of three) and gain honours on the first tee. The Players agree to play from the Blue Tees.

Scenario One: Ball Might be Out-of-Bounds

Foremost smashes a powerful drive which veers into the trees right disappearing in the general vicinity of the Club Maintenance Facility which is marked by white stakes as Out-of-Bounds. Even if the ball did not reach the Out-of-Bounds stakes, Foremost knows a successful search for the ball is not assured, as the ball might have ricocheted from the tree branches in any direction into high rough. Well, here we go, says Foremost, as he knows the new Rules introduce a 3-minute search instead of the familiar 5-minute search!

Foremost announces that he will hit a Provisional ball to save time, as the penalty for a ball Lost or Out-of-Bounds is stroke and distance, and an unsuccessful search would entail a long walk back to the tee box. He steps aside so the other players may tee off first.

Ruling: If a ball might be Lost or Out-of-Bounds, in order to save time, a player may elect to play a Provisional ball. He must announce using the word Provisional or otherwise clearly indicate his intention to play a provisional, or this ball becomes his ball in play under penalty of stroke and distance. He will have 3 minutes to find his original ball after beginning a search.

R18.2 penalty for ball lost or out-of-bounds

R18.3a and b: playing and announcing a provisional ball

R6.4c: order of play when a player hits provisional from teeing area

New:

Definition (hereinafter, Defs) Lost: the 3-minute search

Scenario Two Ball in Bunker in Practice Area

After watching TicToc and the Yank split the middle of the fairway with their drives, Yogi tees off and hits a duck-hook into the practice range. He finds his ball in a practice bunker next to a stick, and in a deep footprint surrounded by a handful of range balls. He removes the range balls and the stick from the bunker, just grazing the ball with his hand and causing it to move as he picked up the last range ball.

Issues: Is the practice range in play? Is Yogi entitled to free relief from the bunker or, if not, from the range balls, the stick, or the footprint? Did he incur a penalty when he caused his own ball to move in picking up the last range ball?

Ruling: Unless the Committee has defined the boundaries of the course to not include the practice range, the practice range itself lies in the General Area, which is one of the five Areas of the Course. Accordingly, Yogi’s ball is In Play As Is. Bunkers are one of the four Specific Areas of the Course (these include Teeing Areas, Penalty Areas, and the Putting Green of the hole being played). In fact, a specific rule has been added to govern play from Bunkers since they uniquely address play from sand.

Prior to playing his shot, Yogi may remove the range balls (Moveable Obstructions) and the stick (a Loose Impediment). While it would be an infraction to cause his ball to move in removing the stick (Loose Impediment), there is no penalty incurred when the ball is moved in removing the range ball (Moveable Obstructions), so long as Yogi replaces the ball on its original spot.

Finally, he may not ground his club or improve his lie (a Condition Affecting the Stroke) by smoothing the indentation of the footprint.

Defs: Course, Movable Obstruction; Loose Impediment; In Play

R8.1: must play course as he finds it

R8.1a(3): may not alter surface by removing indentations

R12.2b: grounding club by touching sand behind ball

New:

Defs: Areas of Course; General Area; Bunkers (new language)

R12: specific rule for Bunkers (no longer within umbrella term for Hazards)

R12.2a: may remove Loose Impediments or Movable Obstructions from bunkers

R12.2b: may touch sand except to test, or right in front of or right behind

Scenario Three: Provisional Ball Play

Foremost has hit his provisional ball off the tee in the exact same area as his original ball. Both balls are found In-Bounds within 3 minutes of beginning his search, although one ball lies directly behind a tree offering no shot in the direction of the green. Although both balls are marked with Foremost’s traditional F logo, in the general excitement of this historic day, he failed to add any other identifying mark to his provisional ball. In short, Foremost has no way of identifying which ball is his original and which is his provisional.

Issues: Which ball should he play? What does he lie?

Ruling: If only one of his balls had remained on the course, he would have had to play it as his provisional. With both balls on the course, he must choose which one to play and it is treated as his provisional. The other ball is treated as Lost. Foremost picks up the ball behind the tree, and plays the other as his provisional lying 3 after stroke and distance. This ball is now in play.

New:

R18.3c: codifies former Decision addressing what happens when players are unable to distinguish between original and provisional balls

Scenario Four: Ball Identification

TicToc and the Yank find their balls several feet apart in the fairway. TicToc easily sees the red dot identification mark on his own ball. The Yank quickly