Out-of-bounds play and scoring
Kerry from Cranbrook, B.C. asks:
What is the correct way to score and play a shot that goes out of bounds?
To answer his question, I went to the USGA rule book and found his answer under Rule 27: Ball lost out of bounds; provisional ball.
Kerry may not play his ball from its out-of-bounds location; however, if the ball is partially in-bounds, it is considered in-bounds and he could play that ball normally. Determining out-of-bounds has its own technicalities. Consider this: if the boundary is delineated by a fence or stakes, “the out-of-bounds line is determined by the nearest inside points of the stakes or fence posts at ground level excluding angled supports.” If the boundary is shown by a line on the ground, the line itself is out of bounds. If Kerry’s ball was in-bounds, it is OK for him to stand out of bounds to play his ball.
Rule 27 says:
If a ball is out of bounds, the player must play a ball, under penalty of one stroke, as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was last played.
If Kerry’s ball was fully out of bounds, he would have to either retrieve his ball within five minutes, or put a new ball into play and return to the spot where he made his bad hit into the out-of-bounds area. That is the distance penalty. In addition, Kerry would have to add one stroke to his score.
Now, if Kerry is golfing in Canada, he can give himself a break by following the Royal Canadian Golf Association rule book. According to the RCGA rules, he may play his retrieved ball at any point on the line between where he initially hit the shot and the place where the ball went out of bounds.
Cross-border golfers must follow the rules adopted by each course, and shouldn’t use RCGA rules while playing in the States.
I would like to thank Kevin McIsaac, a Fernie, B.C. golfer and rule aficionado, for bringing this important—and potentially game-saving—difference to my attention.
Update: Helpful Kevin from Fernie, B.C. has written in again, now unsure of the accuracy of his suggestion and my interpretation of it.
“There are almost no simple rules in golf,” Kevin wrote, “It’s maddening.”
Don’t worry, Kevin. We are all in this together. Let’s get into the text. The official word from the RCGA is this:
If a ball is lost or is out of bounds, the player must play a ball, under penalty of one stroke, as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was last played (see Rule 20-5).
Rule 20-5 states:
When a player elects or is required to make his next stroke from where a previous stroke was made, he must proceed as follows:
- On the Teeing Ground: The ball to be played must be played from within the teeing ground. It may be played from anywhere within the teeing ground and it may be teed.
- Through the Green and in a Hazard: The ball to be played must be dropped.
- On the Putting Green: The ball to be played must be placed.
Depending where Kerry made his bad hit, he would have to either tee up his ball, drop a ball in his original spot—or place it on the green. He would have to add a stroke to his score. It appears that the RCGA and the USGA are in agreement for this situation.
At this point, I would like to recommend that every golfer keep the “RCGA(RCGA website)”:http://www.rcga.org and the “USGA(USGA website)”:http://www.usga.org rule books at hand.
Again, I thank my enthusiastic readership. It is great to know that you are out there, also pondering the great game of golf!