The Rules of Golf are tricky! Thankfully, we’ve got the guru. Our Rules Guy knows the book front to back. Got a question? He’s got all the answers.
If I want to take a stroke-and-distance penalty under Rule 18.1 for a tee shot that I don’t want to find (or look for), my understanding is I can if I don’t declare it a provisional. Am I also correct in thinking that I can’t re-tee it? If not, do I drop the ball or place it? — Fred Erickson, via email
Fred, your understanding was correct, right until it wasn’t.
Rules Guy: If you hit toward the wrong fairway, can you re-tee without penalty?
On the first point, yes, if you played from the teeing area and don’t want to find the ball, you can take stroke-and-distance relief and play again from said teeing area.
Regarding not being able to re-tee, wrong: Per Rule 6.2b, you can do so — again, you just need to play the ball from within the teeing area, whether on a tee or on the ground, as you prefer. It may not always pay to look for your ball, but it always pays to look up the appropriate rule.
For more tee-related guidance from our guru, read on …
A friend and I reached a tee box with only one marker. We played from where we thought was reasonable, guessing at the other marker’s location. Was that okay? — Warren Ayala, Anthem, Ariz.
In match play, you and your opponent (or friend or frenemy) can agree on how to decide the issue.
In stroke play, where the distinction becomes more important, contact the committee. Not reachable? Per Rule 6.2b(4), use reasonable judgment to try to play from the two club-length rectangle based on the front and outside edges of the tee marker. Clever committees will dot tee markers’ positions with spray paint for this eventuality.
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Got a question about the Rules? Ask the Rules Guy! Send your queries, confusions and comments to rulesguy@golf.com. We promise he won’t throw the book at you.
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