USGA RULE OF THE WEEK
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Your club championship is scheduled for next month and you are anxious to use the golf balls you received as a birthday gift in the competition. The information on the box of balls indicates that the balls meet USGA specifications. You check "The Rules of Golf" book you received with your USGA membership and note that Rule 5-1 states that the ball the player uses must conform to the requirements in "Appendix III" of the Rules.
As you are filling out the entry form for the competition, the head professional at your golf course informs you that while in previous years players were permitted to use golf balls that conformed to "Appendix III", the Golf Committee at the club has decided to adopt the Note to Rule 5-1 for this year's competition. He explains that since the Committee has adopted the Note to Rule 5-1, the balls that players use in this year's competition must be on the USGA's List of Conforming Golf Balls (see "Appendix I, Part C, Item Ib"). He suggests that you check the USGA's Web site (www.usga.org) for this list to determine if the balls you received are on the list. The list is updated on the USGA's Web site the first Wednesday of every month.
Satisfied that your golf balls are on the List of Conforming Golf Balls, you decide to prepare yourself for the club championship by reviewing the Rules of Golf. You note that both Rule 6-5 and Rule 12-2 recommend that the player place an identification mark on his ball. You use your black magic marker to draw a large circle around the pole markings (e.g. Titleist) on both sides of each ball. On three of the balls, you mark a capital "P" on the seam side of the ball (e.g. above Pro V1) to identify balls you will use as provisional balls.
On the day of the competition you arrive at the first teeing ground ten minutes before your starting time. This gives you time to count your clubs, receive instructions from the starter and inform each of your fellow-competitors of the brand of ball you will be playing and the markings you have made on the ball to ensure that each of your fellow-competitors know the identifying marks you have placed on your golf ball.
During play of the first hole, your ball is struck towards a bunker next to the green. When you arrive at the bunker, although you and your fellow-competitors agree that your ball should be in the bunker, your ball is not visible. Your caddie takes a rake and you take a club and both of you begin probing in the sand, where you believe the ball is likely to be, as permitted by Decision 6-4/10 and Rule 12-1. Your ball is found and it rolls to the bottom of the bunker. You recreate the lie and place the ball in the recreated lie as required by Rule 20-3b.
While searching for your ball on the twelfth hole, your caddie accidentally kicks your ball which was at rest directly under a bush that is in ground under repair. Although you could replace your ball under the bush without penalty as permitted by Rule 12-1, you elect to proceed under Rule 25-1b.
Following a suspension of play due to heavy rains, your ball and a fellow-competitor's ball come to rest in the middle of the fairway. As you and the fellow-competitor approach the balls, you notice that both balls are covered with mud. Since you believe that your ball is the ball farthest from the hole, you announce to your fellow-competitor that you wish to lift the ball for identification as permitted by Rule 12-2. After marking the position of the ball and while your fellow-competitor watches, you lift the ball to attempt to identify it. Your caddie reminds you that you may only clean the ball to the extent necessary to identify it. You find your identification mark on the ball and give your fellow-competitor the opportunity to observe you replacing the ball.
As indicated above, except in a hazard, the Rules allow a player to identify a ball as his own before making a stroke at his ball to ensure that he does not play a wrong ball. Although the Rules do not permit a player to lift his ball in a hazard to identify it, the player incurs no penalty if he were to make a stroke at a wrong ball in a hazard - see Rule 15-3.
Reprinted with permission from the USGA.
