Golf’s governing bodies the Royal and Ancient and the United States Golf Association have unveiled the finalised new rules to be implemented on January 1.
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This modernisation will hopefully make the guidelines easier to understand following worldwide feedback. Some of the significant adjustments include:
- Dropping procedure: Golfers will drop the ball from knee height as compared to a previous suggested drop from any height.
- Removing penalty for double hit: No penalty for striking the ball more than once in the course of a stroke. Previous suggestion was for one-stroke penalty.
- Elimination or reduction of “ball moved” penalties: No penalty for accidentally moving a ball on putting green or in searching for a lost ball and a player is not responsible for causing a ball to move unless it is “virtually certain” that he or she did so.
- Relaxed putting green rules: No penalty for ball hitting flag stick. Players may repair spike marks and other damage and no penalty for merely touching line of putt.
- Relaxed rules for penalty areas “currently called water hazards”: Expanded definition and no penalty for moving looks items or touching ground or water in penalty area.
- Relaxed bunker rules: No penalty for moving loose impediments or touching sand with a hand or club. Definitions still apply. Option to play ball outside of bunker with two-stroke penalty.
- Relying on player integrity: A player’s reasonable judgement when estimating a spot or line or distance will be upheld even if video evidence later shows it to be wrong.
- Pace-of-play support: Reduced time for searching for a lost ball from five minutes now to three minutes. Recommend that players take no more than 40 seconds to play a stroke.
Publications will be distributed in September to help players and club officials interpret and apply the new rules. Existing rules of golf remain in place for 2018.
In other news, ladies’ country week is underway at Country Club Tasmania with Exeter’s Cindy Bowkett and Helen Streets winning division 1 on Monday.
Bridport pair Raylene Taylor and Ros Leitch won division 2, while George Town duo Kerri Davis and Leonie Gordon took out division 3.
Bridport has its four-ball ambrose for men and mixed team on Saturday, March 31. Call 0499 599 002 to enter.
