Except as modified herein, we will observe The
Rules of Golf as promulgated by the USGA.
Rules
of Golf & The Decisions on The Rules of Golf - 2004-05
What follows is a list of rules modifications
and clarifications, as well as answers to rules question that
have been posed to The League Office.
1. The Bare Earth Rule has been
abolished.
2. The Lost Ball
Rule has been abolished. Any player who loses a ball must
now proceed under the USGA rules and suffer a penalty of 1
stroke and distance.
3.
Here are a player's options if his
ball enters a lateral water
hazard as defined by red stakes. The player may, under penalty of one stroke: a) replay
his ball from the point where the ball was last played; b) drop
a ball behind the water hazard keeping the point where
the ball entered the margin of the water hazard directly between
the pin and the spot where the ball is dropped; or c) drop a
ball outside the water hazard within two club-lengths of and not
nearer the hole than (i) the point where the original ball last
crossed the margin of the water hazard or (ii) a point on
the opposite margin of the water hazard equidistant from
the hole. As an example, if a ball flies the
10th green and goes in the water behind the green, a player is
allowed to drop the ball behind the green, above the hazard
line, within two club lengths of where it last crossed the
margin, no nearer to the hole. If the player proceeds
under the third option, he will most likely need to drop the
ball to the right or the left of the point where it last crossed
the margin of the hazard in order to be no nearer to the hole.
If a player's ball enters a water hazard defined by yellow
stakes, then the player may proceed under a) or b) above, but
not c), which is only available if the ball entered a lateral
water hazard. This paragraph is simply a clarification and does not alter the The Rules
of Golf.
4.
Under Local Rule, all stone walls are considered integral parts
of the course. A player unable to play his shot due to the
proximity of a stone wall may declare his ball unplayable and
proceed, with penalty, under the appropriate USGA rule.
5.
If a player's ball becomes embedded in the stacked sod wall of a
bunker, he may drop his ball behind and outside the bunker with
no penalty. The sod walls of a bunker are not deemed
to be part of the bunker. The determining factor is
whether the ball is resting or touching the sand floor of a
bunker.
6.
If
any one group completes their 9 hole round, the
event will be considered an official round. If
weather conditions force the cancellation of
play prior to any group completing their round,
the entire round will be replayed in its
entirety. In the event that weather
conditions force the cancellation of play after
one or more groups have completed their round,
all matches will be deemed to have ended on
the last hole that all the groups completed.
For instance, if the first two groups finish
their rounds and play is cancelled with groups
still out on the course on holes 7, 8 and 9, all
matches will be decided using the first six
holes only. Determination of whether to cancel
play will be left to the discretion of the golf
course. In all instances where the
course says play will be left to the
league's discretion, the decision of the
Commissioner shall be final.
How to Correctly Handle a Rules Question
If you encounter a situation during a match
where there is a rules question and you are not
sure exactly what to do, the best way to handle
the situation might be to have the player in
question play two balls. For example, if a
player wants to take a drop from an area
that his opponent thinks is questionable, the
opponent should suggest that the player play
from the questionable spot, as well as from
another spot that is available to him under the
rules. Both balls should be holed out and
the scores marked. HOWEVER, PLEASE NOTE,
BEFORE THE PLAYER HITS EITHER BALL HE MUST
DECLARE WHICH BALL HE WANTS TO USE FOR HIS SCORE
IF THE RULES ALLOW, AND ANNOUNCE IT TO HIS
OPPONENT. If the rules do not allow
him to play from that spot, the other score will
be used.