RULING!

[sriedy]

I have a question about a ruling in an even that happened to me last year…..

 

I hit my tee shot then went for a green in 2 on a par 5. Well I missed short and went into a water hazard. Well then I got all pissed because I was already playing poorly and just reached into my found ball part of bag and dropped a ball and hit it. Well in the middle of the air the ball broke in half and half the ball landed on the green and the other half landed in the water. (The ball was obviously busted prior to hitting it, being ran over ball a lawnmower or what have you) Anyone know what the ruling should have been? My buddies made me take another drop saying that it went into the water. After the round we asked the club pro and he did not know either. He even called a bunch of his buddies that are pros and we never got a definitive answer. The round we were playing was just for fun and practice, but I would like to know if anyone has the same experience or happens to know the ruling.

[Charlie_Foxtrot]

Replay the ball with no penalty.

 

5-3 Ball Unfit for Play

 

A ball is unfit for play if it is visibly cut, cracked or out of shape. A ball is not unfit for play solely because mud or other materials adhere to it, its surface is scratched or scraped or its paint is damaged or discolored.

 

If a player has reason to believe his ball has become unfit for play during play of the hole being played, he may lift the ball without penalty to determine whether it is unfit.

 

Before lifting the ball, the player must announce his intention to his opponent in match play or his marker or a fellow-competitor in stroke play and mark the position of the ball.

 

He may then lift and examine it provided that he gives his opponent, marker or fellow-competitor an opportunity to examine the ball and observe the lifting and replacement. The ball must not be cleaned when lifted under Rule 5-3.

 

If the player fails to comply with all or any part of this procedure, he incurs a penalty of one stroke.

 

If it is determined that the ball has become unfit for play during play of the hole being played, the player may substitute another ball, placing it on the spot where the original ball lay. Otherwise, the original ball must be replaced. If a player substitutes a ball when not permitted and he makes a stroke at the wrongly substituted ball, he incurs the general penalty for a breach of Rule 5-3, but there is no additional penalty under this Rule or Rule 15-1.

 

If a ball breaks into pieces as a result of a stroke, the stroke is canceled and the player must play a ball without penalty as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was played (see Rule 20-5).