USGA Proposes to Modernize Rules of Golf

[Never Trendy]

So what happens if you hit your approach out of bounds but pin high (or just past the pin). Do you take 2 strokes and drop right next to the hole? I assume that's not the case but......(Btw I think I'm this is a great rule)

 

Straight from the USGA website

 

Limits on Location of Relief Area:

• Must be in the general area, and
  
• Must not be nearer the hole than the ball reference point.
  

 

I seem to have lost the link directly to the local rule and the explanation video/diagram. Can someone point me to it please?

 

Edit:

 

Found it on the USGA site

 

http://www.usga.org/...d-distance.html

 

but can't see it in the R&A site

 

That's ridiculous. No way you should actually be able to drop in the fairway...and I would be the one to take advantage of it the most out of anyone I regularly play with. Let me see -- ball is in the street or someone's bathroom, but I'll just go up 320 yards on the edge of the fairway, pull out a wedge, plop it on the green, hopefully close to the hole, and see if I can sink the putt for an ordinary bogey.

 

Agree. I have a long but very unpredictable drive. If I go OB off the tee I'm usually hitting my provisional with a shorter club to try and scrape a point on the hole.

 

If they really want to go with the new rule they should treat the drop like a hazard. 2 clubs point of entry. But only if you haven't put a provisional in play.

[Krt22]

So what happens if you hit your approach out of bounds but pin high (or just past the pin). Do you take 2 strokes and drop right next to the hole? I assume that's not the case but......(Btw I think I'm this is a great rule)

 

Straight from the USGA website

 

Limits on Location of Relief Area:

• Must be in the general area, and
  
• Must not be nearer the hole than the ball reference point.
  

 

I seem to have lost the link directly to the local rule and the explanation video/diagram. Can someone point me to it please?

 

Edit:

 

Found it on the USGA site

 

http://www.usga.org/...d-distance.html

 

but can't see it in the R&A site

 

That's ridiculous. No way you should actually be able to drop in the fairway...and I would be the one to take advantage of it the most out of anyone I regularly play with. Let me see -- ball is in the street or someone's bathroom, but I'll just go up 320 yards on the edge of the fairway, pull out a wedge, plop it on the green, hopefully close to the hole, and see if I can sink the putt for an ordinary bogey.

 

It has to be equal distance to where it went OB, so 9 times out of 10 you will be walking further back. And hitting it 320 requires a solid center strike, not something your average over the top slicer or duck hooker is going to pull off hitting foul balls OB

[Never Trendy]

So what happens if you hit your approach out of bounds but pin high (or just past the pin). Do you take 2 strokes and drop right next to the hole? I assume that's not the case but......(Btw I think I'm this is a great rule)

 

Straight from the USGA website

 

Limits on Location of Relief Area:

• Must be in the general area, and
  
• Must not be nearer the hole than the ball reference point.
  

 

I seem to have lost the link directly to the local rule and the explanation video/diagram. Can someone point me to it please?

 

Edit:

 

Found it on the USGA site

 

http://www.usga.org/...d-distance.html

 

but can't see it in the R&A site

 

That's ridiculous. No way you should actually be able to drop in the fairway...and I would be the one to take advantage of it the most out of anyone I regularly play with. Let me see -- ball is in the street or someone's bathroom, but I'll just go up 320 yards on the edge of the fairway, pull out a wedge, plop it on the green, hopefully close to the hole, and see if I can sink the putt for an ordinary bogey.

 

It has to be equal distance to where it went OB, so 9 times out of 10 you will be walking further back. And hitting it 320 requires a solid center strike, not something your average over the top slicer or duck hooker is going to pull off hitting foul balls OB

 

I don't totally disagree but I believe that 9/10 drops will be taken closer than they actually should be.

 

And by the way everyone in here is cheering this decision means they see it as an advantage to their games.

 

As for the speed of play advantage I agree it will help but how often are people having to go back to a tee to re hit? I've always been taught to hit a provisional if you have any doubt.

[Krt22]

I normally hit a provisional, lots of folks dont and that single occurrence can easily backlog a course when you have tournaments going on at a public course.

 

In the grand scheme of things I don't think it will change much at all in terms of the overall competitiveness of golf as it would apply equally to everyone. The high handicappers who spray it everywhere might benefit some, but their handicaps will likely end up being lower overall as well.

[om18v]

All the leagues and groups I have played in always play the OB ball as take a drop near where it went out and take a stroke (so if a tee shot goes OB take a drop nearby and you're hitting 3). According to the 2019 revision it's 2 strokes and you can choose anywhere behind the line of where it went out out all the way to the fairway for 2 strokes. So is every OB drop 2 strokes (so hitting from the tee OB then your laying 3, hitting 4)???

I hope you understand that your "normal" procedure is NOT allowed under the current rules. Under the current rules, if you hit your first OB, you take a penalty (stroke 2), and hit another tee shot (stroke 3). Your next shot, hitting from the fairway, the woods, wherever, is hitting 4. The 2019 local rule (remember, this only applies if the course/club chooses to apply it) still has you hitting 4 from about even with the point where the ball went OB. The difference is that you don't have the risk of hitting shot #3 into some awful nasty place, you get to pick the spot. On the down side, if you hit the first tee shot nearly sideways, your drop might be only 50 yards in front of the tee.

 

Gosh, it makes so much sense when you state it that way.

[nsxguy]

All the leagues and groups I have played in always play the OB ball as take a drop near where it went out and take a stroke (so if a tee shot goes OB take a drop nearby and you're hitting 3). According to the 2019 revision it's 2 strokes and you can choose anywhere behind the line of where it went out out all the way to the fairway for 2 strokes. So is every OB drop 2 strokes (so hitting from the tee OB then your laying 3, hitting 4)???

 

If you didn't hit a provisional, we drop in the fairway about where your normal drive would go and add TWO strokes. That's a better way to approximate stroke and distance. It also means you will most likely lose the hole.

 

'Round about the time we were discussing your "move the ball 6 inches anywhere" proposal I thought you'd told us you always played by the rules; you just didn't agree with all of them.

 

This now appears not to be the case.

 

Or am I thinking about someone else ?

[xxio]

 

 

I don't totally disagree but I believe that 9/10 drops will be taken closer than they actually should be.

 

And by the way everyone in here is cheering this decision means they see it as an advantage to their games.

 

 

 

As a Committee member I dread how many "this is where my ball went OB" arguments we will have to settle.

[QEight]

I don't totally disagree but I believe that 9/10 drops will be taken closer than they actually should be.

 

And by the way everyone in here is cheering this decision means they see it as an advantage to their games.

 

 

 

As a Committee member I dread how many "this is where my ball went OB" arguments we will have to settle.

 

As a Committee member you should then not put this Local Rule in place, perhaps?

 

How many disputes you have on lateral water hazards and their entry point? In OB case, there is a two stroke penalty at least.

[xxio]

Our course has quite a few tee shots with 40-60 foot drops. It is hard to determine where a ball "exited through the green" 200 yards away and 40 feet down when these areas run lengths of fairways. To avoid arguments we mark them OB.

 

Most of our lateral water hazards run only for 30-40 yards, so those are easier to estimate. If mistakes are made there, it will be only by a few meters at most.

 

As to non-implementation, once the golfers know that this can be a local rule the membership will push for it.

It will be almost impossible for the Committee to say no.

[QEight]

Our course has quite a few tee shots with 40-60 foot drops. It is hard to determine where a ball "exited through the green" 200 yards away and 40 feet down when these areas run lengths of fairways. To avoid arguments we mark them OB.

 

Most of our lateral water hazards run only for 30-40 yards, so those are easier to estimate. If mistakes are made there, it will be only by a few meters at most.

 

As to non-implementation, once the golfers know that this can be a local rule the membership will push for it.

It will be almost impossible for the Committee to say no.

 

Perhaps a compromise for general play LR for OB and for tournaments no LR.

[Newby]

Our course has quite a few tee shots with 40-60 foot drops. It is hard to determine where a ball "exited through the green" 200 yards away and 40 feet down when these areas run lengths of fairways. To avoid arguments we mark them OB.

 

Most of our lateral water hazards run only for 30-40 yards, so those are easier to estimate. If mistakes are made there, it will be only by a few meters at most.

 

As to non-implementation, once the golfers know that this can be a local rule the membership will push for it.

It will be almost impossible for the Committee to say no.

 

Perhaps a compromise for general play LR for OB and for tournaments no LR.

 

Do tournaments in general satisfy the suggested condition 'pros and high level elite amateur events'?

[Halebopp]

Our course has quite a few tee shots with 40-60 foot drops. It is hard to determine where a ball "exited through the green" 200 yards away and 40 feet down when these areas run lengths of fairways. To avoid arguments we mark them OB.

 

Most of our lateral water hazards run only for 30-40 yards, so those are easier to estimate. If mistakes are made there, it will be only by a few meters at most.

 

As to non-implementation, once the golfers know that this can be a local rule the membership will push for it.

It will be almost impossible for the Committee to say no.

 

Perhaps a compromise for general play LR for OB and for tournaments no LR.

 

Do tournaments in general satisfy the suggested condition 'pros and high level elite amateur events'?

 

I have a gut feeling the normal, weekly competitions and local/regional level amateur and junior tours would allow the local rule but for club championships and top level, national junior/amateur/pro tours the local rule wouldn't be in place.

[EmperorPenguin]

What about the lateral hazard option of dropping equidistant on the other side? The proposed rule was to eliminate that option.

[Halebopp]

What about the lateral hazard option of dropping equidistant on the other side? The proposed rule was to eliminate that option.

 

Not allowed unless there's a local rule in place to allow it.

[xxio]

Our course has quite a few tee shots with 40-60 foot drops. It is hard to determine where a ball "exited through the green" 200 yards away and 40 feet down when these areas run lengths of fairways. To avoid arguments we mark them OB.

 

Most of our lateral water hazards run only for 30-40 yards, so those are easier to estimate. If mistakes are made there, it will be only by a few meters at most.

 

As to non-implementation, once the golfers know that this can be a local rule the membership will push for it.

It will be almost impossible for the Committee to say no.

 

Perhaps a compromise for general play LR for OB and for tournaments no LR.

 

How would that affect handicaps if you have a "different course" for regular play and for tournaments?

[QEight]

Our course has quite a few tee shots with 40-60 foot drops. It is hard to determine where a ball "exited through the green" 200 yards away and 40 feet down when these areas run lengths of fairways. To avoid arguments we mark them OB.

 

Most of our lateral water hazards run only for 30-40 yards, so those are easier to estimate. If mistakes are made there, it will be only by a few meters at most.

 

As to non-implementation, once the golfers know that this can be a local rule the membership will push for it.

It will be almost impossible for the Committee to say no.

 

Perhaps a compromise for general play LR for OB and for tournaments no LR.

 

Do tournaments in general satisfy the suggested condition 'pros and high level elite amateur events'?

 

Infograph says:

This Local Rule is intended to be used only for lower levels of play where pace of play and other problems may be significant. It is not intended for higher levels of play, and particularly not for professional or elite amateur competitions.

 

To me it does not say the LR has to be used for "lower levels", nor it does not say what "low level" is.

[QEight]

Our course has quite a few tee shots with 40-60 foot drops. It is hard to determine where a ball "exited through the green" 200 yards away and 40 feet down when these areas run lengths of fairways. To avoid arguments we mark them OB.

 

Most of our lateral water hazards run only for 30-40 yards, so those are easier to estimate. If mistakes are made there, it will be only by a few meters at most.

 

As to non-implementation, once the golfers know that this can be a local rule the membership will push for it.

It will be almost impossible for the Committee to say no.

 

Perhaps a compromise for general play LR for OB and for tournaments no LR.

 

How would that affect handicaps if you have a "different course" for regular play and for tournaments?

 

I do not know, but is the difference that much in the end? Most people can get the second (i.e. third) shot into play anyway. So they would be hitting fourth from about the same area as using this option. If it would be meaningful, there should be a "non-hcp-compliant" disclaimer in the LR.

[HitEmTrue]

Infograph says:

This Local Rule is intended to be used only for lower levels of play where pace of play and other problems may be significant. It is not intended for higher levels of play, and particularly not for professional or elite amateur competitions.

 

To me it does not say the LR has to be used for "lower levels", nor it does not say what "low level" is.

 

I agree...they are really saying who shouldn't use the LR, more so than who should.

[LeoLeo99]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

[Deceptively Short]

I have one question re this change - if there is no realistic difference to adopting this local rule in terms of handicaps and thereby scoring, why not just implement it fully? If it is a time issue, then surely ‘elite’ Golf appears to take considerably longer than social golf with 6 hour rounds happening every now and again if not routinely in Tour and top amateur golf - all the more reason that they should definitely have it, maybe before us (I haven’t got a word for the opposite of elite - plebs? Common folk? Scum?)

If it goes against the spirit of golf and therefore couldn’ Be used for ‘important’ golf then this a terrible denigation of all the normal competitive golf the rank and file golfers (the paymasters of the Elite), as it is good enough for us but not for them.

Either it is a rule or not - something so fundamental shouldn’t be up to the discretion of the local committee or the judgement of the unknown someone who defines elite.

[QEight]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

[BlackDiamondPar5]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

I'm gonna guess that we'd see this implemented on the majority of the public courses in the USA and a fair number of private courses as well.

[QEight]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

I'm gonna guess that we'd see this implemented on the majority of the public courses in the USA and a fair number of private courses as well.

 

Could be although I hope not. It will be interesting to see how people will actually find it when the play. Will it actually help them at all. Time or score wise.

[Halebopp]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

I'm gonna guess that we'd see this implemented on the majority of the public courses in the USA and a fair number of private courses as well.

 

Could be although I hope not. It will be interesting to see how people will actually find it when the play. Will it actually help them at all. Time or score wise.

 

I agree with you. It'll be interesting to see what the silent majority thinks about this. Funnily enough one of our top guys working in the national Union (Wiki) said publicly on Facebook none of the clubs should put the local rule into use. :D

[BlackDiamondPar5]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

I'm gonna guess that we'd see this implemented on the majority of the public courses in the USA and a fair number of private courses as well.

 

Could be although I hope not. It will be interesting to see how people will actually find it when the play. Will it actually help them at all. Time or score wise.

 

I agree with you. It'll be interesting to see what the silent majority thinks about this. Funnily enough one of our top guys working in the national Union (Wiki) said publicly on Facebook none of the clubs should put the local rule into use. :D

Most public courses in WNY are concerned about pace of play. Our league has used this for years, though the frequency it was used was very low. Provisionals have always been the choice and it's fairly tough to go ob or lose a ball.

[LeoLeo99]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

 

If the course you're playing has the local rule but you want to play elite for the round, you head back to the tips and ignore the local rule?

[sui generis]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

 

If the course you're playing has the local rule but you want to play elite for the round, you head back to the tips and ignore the local rule?

 

Have you even read new Rule 18? Or, the new optional Local Rule?

[BlackDiamondPar5]

Elite vs nonelite

sounds a little like bifurcation.

[davep043]

Will people invoke the elite rules along with playing the tips?

 

Where we playing from today? Whites and local or tips and elite?

 

How is not invoking something same as invoking elite rules?

 

I'd say the OB LR will probably only/mostly be used on busy (resort) courses. Provisonal ball has worked fine where I have played.

 

If the course you're playing has the local rule but you want to play elite for the round, you head back to the tips and ignore the local rule?

Playing a provisional is still allowed. Going back to the tee for a lost ball or OB is still allowed. The Local Rule simply offers one more option.

[North Butte]

Elite vs nonelite

sounds a little like bifurcation.

 

Not sounds like. Is.