Sprinklerhead on the green? Move ball + greenskeeper KITN? I've realized that as a casual player I'm too lazy, don't have time for, or just plain don't care enough to look up all this stuff. I feel the vast majority of the stuff I would have to look up shouldn't have ever happened in the first place. I can't remember most of the questions I was going to post offhand, but this one is towards the less ridiclous end of the spectrum.

Actually you cannot. If you are not on the green, you can't repair marks anywhere off the putting surface.

BO

Which rule is being violated? Rule 13-2 addresses this situation (I think), and as long as the pitch mark does not affect lie, stance, swing, or line, I thought you were free to repair it (although it's likely I'm misunderstanding or forgetting some other rule).

Part of rules 13-2 exceptions state:

"However, the player incurs no penalty if the action occurs on the putting green in removing sand and loose soil or in repairing damage (Rule 16-1)."

Is it intentional that it says the action occurs on the green? Without reference to the location of the players ball? Or is this implied in the reference to rule 16-1?

Off the top of my head, I don't know which rule would be violated either. But since you can't repair anything in your area or line of play, why would you even risk a penalty by repairing anything?

I understand what you are saying about good etiquette and such, and that's good. But I wouldn't take any risk whatsoever along the way.

BO

This happened last time I played: I hit my approach shot into a water hazard in front of the green. It's just a small creek which runs in front of the green and when I got up there my ball was not in the water but inside the yellow stakes, so in the hazard.

I decide I can chop down on it with a wedge and get it on to the green. Now I know I'm not allowed to ground the club in a hazard, so i didn't but as I made my backswing the clubhead made contact with the ground because there was a bit of a ridge behind the ball. I stopped in the middle of my backswing, counted it as a penalty stroke, and then swung again and hit the shot the way I intended.

So I counted 1 penalty stroke and another for my actual shot, was this correct?

Don't know if I'm explaining this well enough, so here's an mspaint:


The red circle is where I made contact with the ground

Why did you stop your backswing?

Dunno, it kinda messed with my head and my first instinct was just to stop. You saying I wouldn't have gotten a penalty if I'd not stopped?

no expert here but I imagine if you continue your swing, despite hitting the ground in your backswing, there's no penalty as you're allowed to touch the ground when you're in the action of your swing. but since you stopped it becomes a penalty.

I dunno for sure either but I thought it ws a penalty if you hit it with the backswing and ok if you hit it on the downswing.

This is not the case...penalty regardless.

OP's scoring was correct.

It's the same as when you clip the sand on your backswing if you're in a bunker. Bunker = hazard. Grounding your club in the hazard = penalty stroke.

It's one of the worst rules in golf imo. You can chunk the **** out of your sand shot and it doesn't count as grounding your club. But when you hit mounds of sand or ground on your backswing it's a penalty? Sweet rule.

It's definitely the most frustrating rule, as the crime doesn't fit the 2 stroke penalty (or loss of hole) of grounding your club.

Found this "NOTE" at the end of the 13-4 rule exceptions.

Note: At any time, including at address or in the backward movement for the stroke, the player may touch, with a club or otherwise, any obstruction, any construction declared by the Committee to be an integral part of the course or any grass, bush, tree or other growing thing.

So if I read this it means you can touch the "grass" in the hazard it isn't a penalty.

You can touch everything that isn't the ground or sand I think.

What about grounding your club in the water if you're trying to hit one out of it?

^^^ Heh, this happened to me yesterday. My ball was on some vegetation in a creek, I was able to take a stance and hit it, but afterwards I was wondering if I could've "grounded" my club in the water.

Yes but if you break the grass or other growing thing it's still a penalty. This penalty decided a recent tournament at Harbor town.

I really doubt addressing and touching the water is a penalty, as it isn't the material your ball is sitting on or being supported by (so you're not grounded). As for sweeping some rough grass, that's obviously legal unless it's nearly certain you grounded your club (ie. takeaway is slown down, or clearly thrown off path after the ground.)

I think that was actually a loose impediment. If I understand correctly, had it been attached to the ground it wouldn't have been a penalty.

What is the process for handicapping a course? I'm not talking about course rating, rather ranking holes 1-18.

I think they go by average number of swear words per hole. That's why par 5's are the hardest and par 3's are the easiest handicap-wise.

The process is pretty damn technical, but the gist of the process is simply ranking each hole in difficulty level for the average golfer who shoots between 95-100. The reason par 3's are usually the easiest is because there are fewer shots to muck up. Conversely, par 5's are harder because there are more shots for the average golfer to muck up.

Naturally, for better players, par 5's are the easiest holes while par 3's are the most difficult.

BO

They are re-doing the handicap holes at my hole course this year. The pro is collecting cards from players and they are put into 2 groups. Basically A and B players. Bo is correct the scores from the B players(high handicapers) are averaged for all the holes and compared with the A players(single digits handicapper) scores and then compared. The A average is subtracted from B averages and the bigger the delta the "harder" the hole.

So it goes by actual results? Or is this some sort of "cheap way of doing it yourself" for the course? I thought the USGA or whatever governing body takes care of it had to come in and do all their yardages and hazard analysis or whatever they do for slop and rating.