“Everyone cheats when they first start playing golf. A lot of people don’t ever stop.” — Frank Beard, Senior Tour player and commentator



All games have rules. Without them, the game would make little sense. In golf, there are pages upon pages of rules, and there are also books upon books dedicated to clarifying and fine tuning these regulations. Yet, most golfers simply do not learn the rules, or they essentially fail to play by them. Is this cheating or neglect? I’ll let you decide.

I’ve set out to define three of the more abused rules in golf, hoping to enlighten those of you who want to play the game with the respect it deserves, but simply have not taken the time to learn its directives. Let’s get started.

The unplayable ball

Sometimes we hit bad shots. As an example, you might hit your ball deep into a wooded area. If you find the ball, you have two choices: you can hit it, or you can declare it unplayable. Only you get to determine if your ball’s position is hopeless. If you feel that your ball cannot be hit in its current location, you must declare to your opponents that you are proceeding under Rule 28, outlining the unplayable lie.

You have three options: you can drop your ball within two club lengths of where it lies in any direction, but never closer to the hole; you can drop a ball behind the point where the ball currently lies, keeping that point directly between the hole and the spot on which the ball is to be dropped.

There are situations when these first two options will not offer the player adequate relief. When that is the case, the third and final option must be chosen. Option 28-C requires the player to replay the original shot that got him into this situation. In other words, say your tee shot entered the wooded area as described above. If no relief is available under the first two options, then re-teeing is the only available option.

In any case, the player must count his original stroke and also add one penalty stroke for invoking the unplayable rule.

Playing a provisional

As in the circumstances above, a player slices his ball into a thick and wooded area. From the tee, there is no way that this player can tell whether or not their ball is “findable.” In order to expedite play, the golfer announces that he is hitting a “provisional” ball in case he cannot find his initial tee shot in the trees. He hits another tee shot after all other players have hit their first tee balls.

If and when the player finds his original ball, the provisional ball is immediately declared out of play. The player then proceeds to play his original tee shot. He may deem it to be unplayable if he wishes and proceed under Rule 28. However, he cannot use his provisional ball as an option (re-hitting the original shot). That would give the player an unfair advantage as he knows where his provisional ball lies. Remember, the provisional ball was only played as a response to a potential lost ball.

When is a ball lost?

A ball is lost when it cannot be found within five minutes of reaching the area where it is assumed to be and a search has begun. A ball is also deemed lost if a player hits a shot into an area where he is not willing to look. As an example, a player may hit a poor tee shot into the trees and immediately state that he is declaring his ball to be lost and re-tee hitting three.

Lastly, a ball is considered lost under the rules if a player re-hits an errant shot from the identical place without informing at least one of his opponents of his intention to hit a provisional ball.

Two questions

• Can a player declare his ball unplayable anywhere on the golf course?

• Are the rules for unplayable lies different when your ball is in the sand trap?

These are two worthy inquiries about the rules that connect to the regulations above.

And now the answers.

A player cannot declare his ball unplayable in a water hazard, and the rules are different to a degree when declaring a ball unplayable in the bunker. While all three options as defined in Rule 28 remain intact, if a player uses options A or B, their ball MUST remain in the bunker. Only under option C, re-hitting the original shot, can a player remove his ball from the bunker.

Until next week, keep it in the fairway.

(Ken Ruggiero is a local golf instructor and has been writing this column for the past 23 seasons.)