Dear Linda,
Last week in a better ball of two match play competition, my friend thought she hit a perfect straight shot in the middle of the fairway. When she went forward to find her ball, it was not in the fairway. After looking around she found her ball in the rough and expressed her surprise about it being there.
She hit her second shot from the rough and then her opponent said: “Did you not see that my ball hit your ball and that is why it ended up in the rough?”
Please tell me what is the ruling in this case.
Did she hit the ball from the wrong place?
Was her opponent wrong not telling her what happened?
Lulu
Dear Lulu,
Ordinarily, when a player’s ball at rest is moved by another player’s ball in motion, the moved ball must be replaced. If the ball is not replaced, the penalty in match play is loss of hole [Rule 18-5, Penalty].
However, in the situation you describe, your friend’s opponent withheld information, thereby committing what is inherently an unforgivable golf “crime.” She knew that her ball had moved her opponent’s ball, and she also apparently was aware of the rule requiring a player to replace a moved ball before hitting it (judging from her question). She allowed her opponent to hit from a wrong place by withholding the information that her ball had moved her opponent’s.
If a player intentionally or knowingly gives wrong information, the Committee is justified in disqualifying the player for a serious breach of etiquette (Rule 33-7). Withholding information is no different from giving wrong information.
In the situation you describe, Lulu, I can see no reason not to impose a penalty of disqualification. A basic tenet of golf is that all players will demonstrate integrity and sportsmanship. This was an unsportsmanlike act, and the maximum penalty is well-deserved [Decision 9/1].
Linda
Copyright © 2009 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
