Ask Linda #281-Most Likely Score

Dear Linda,

Once again, thanks for a really helpful and informative newsletter. I have a question about the information from #276 regarding ESC and Most Likely Score. I am from Ireland, and in our handicapping system (CONGU), we have a similar clause (Clause 19) for handicapping purposes, where in effect, the most you can score on any hole is a net double bogey. I believe that this is the same as ESC. We do not, however, have anything that is similar to Most Likely Score, and I am not quite sure I understand when/how this would apply. I certainly understand the concept, but it would seem that ESC would usually supersede Most Likely Score, in that regardless of what score you think you might have had, if you hadn't picked up, ESC/ net double bogey would be the score that you would put on your card. The only scenario I can imagine where Most Likely Score would come into play would be on a hole where you were actually shooting close to your handicap (better than net double bogey or ESC), and if that was the case, why would you pick up?? Would it be possible for you to give an illustration (for your CONGU readers) of why/when anyone would use Most Likely Score??

Thank you.

Lulu

Dear Lulu,

It will help me to answer your question if you will first tell me how you decide what score to write on your card when you pick up during match play. For example, if you are lying 2 on the green of a par four, and your opponent holes out from the fairway for an eagle 2, you have lost the hole and will pick up. What score do you record?

Thanks,

Linda

Dear Linda,

Thanks for your quick response. Ah, here comes the difference between the US system and CONGU. Match play is not considered a qualifying score over here. You would not record a score on your card, other than one up, one down, etc. We only record scores for handicaps in qualifying 'competitions' that are held weekly at the club, which are either singles stroke or Stableford. Games like match play, better ball, etc. would not be qualifying. If someone is doing much better than their handicap indicates, during match play or other non-qualifying competitions, the handicap committee would review their performance and could adjust under a general play review.  So perhaps the question would be: “Would Most Likely Score ever be used in a situation other than match play (as in a qualifying situation similar to European rules) and if so, why?”

Thanks,

Lulu

Dear Lulu,

The USGA and the R&A have worked together since 1951 in establishing the Rules of Golf and the Decisions on the Rules of Golf. Thus people all over the world are able to compete under the same rules.

The rules for establishing handicaps, however, are not universal. In the United States, we are governed by the rules set forth in the USGA Handicap System. The Council of National Golf Unions (CONGU) sets the rules for establishing official handicaps in England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Board of Golf Australia sets handicapping policies in that country (I believe Australia uses the USGA system with a few minor changes). The European Golf Association (EGA) is in charge of the handicap system used in approximately 40 countries in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East; it is based on Part III of the CONGU Scheme, the Course and Slope Rating System of the USGA, and the Stableford System.

What this means for my columns is that when I answer questions about the Rules of Golf, the answers will apply to everyone. However, when I answer questions regarding handicaps, the answers will apply only to those players governed by the USGA Handicap System.

Now let’s look at your question (bet you thought I’d never get to it) and address the issues you raise. You suggest that ESC would supersede Most Likely Score. That statement is correct with regard to posting scores in the United States. If your maximum allowed score under ESC is 9, and your Most Likely Score (or your actual score) is 11, when you total your  round for posting purposes you will use the ESC score of 9. You are never permitted to post a score for a hole that is higher than your maximum ESC score.

The CONGU maximum of net double bogey is not the same is ESC, but it is similar. In applying these maximums, it would seem that the goal of both CONGU and the USGA is to make sure that each player’s handicap reflects his true potential ability.

Most Likely Score comes into play when a golfer picks up in a Four-Ball (Better Ball) competition because his partner has the lower score, and in Match Play when he concedes or is conceded a hole. Under the USGA system, when a player in such events does not complete a hole or is conceded a hole, he is obligated to record his most likely score for handicap purposes. Players are obligated to post scores in both match play and stroke play competitions (including multi-ball and team competitions).

A player governed by the USGA Handicap System is required to post all “acceptable” scores. Both match play and multi-ball stroke play events yield “acceptable” scores. 

While I cannot think of another format where “most likely score” would be applied, there is another USGA obligation that I should point out here. When a player completes between 7 and 12 holes, he is required to post a 9-hole score. If at least 13 holes are played, an 18-hole score must be posted. The scores recorded for the holes not played are not the player’s “most likely score,” but rather what you might call his “handicap score.” That number would be par plus any handicap strokes to which he is entitled. For example, a player with a 12 Course Handicap stops playing after completing the 16^th hole. Hole #17 is a par 3, and is listed as the #15 handicap hole. Hole #18 is a par 5, and is the #2 handicap hole. For handicap purposes, he will record a 3 for hole #17, since his handicap would not entitle him to a stroke on that easy hole; he will record a 6 for hole #18, which is par plus the one handicap stroke to which his 12 handicap entitles him.

I am grateful to you, Lulu, for pointing out that rules for posting scores differ throughout the golf world. In future questions regarding handicaps, I will try to remember to notify readers that those answers do not necessarily apply outside the United States and Mexico.

Linda 

Copyright © 2011 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #280-Ball hits cart

Hello Linda,

I hope you can help me with this little problem....

My ball was in a bunker close to the green and there was a golf cart parked on the other side of the green. When I hit the ball, it did not stay on the green; it rolled down a little hill and hit the parked golf cart. The cart was not mine.

Do I incur a penalty because the ball was stopped by a moveable object? (I had no expectation at all that the ball would hit the cart when I made my shot.)

Thanks so much for your help.  I always appreciate your emails.

Sincerely,

Lulu

Dear Lulu,

While it is true that a golf cart is movable, it is not a movable obstruction. Under the Rules of Golf, a cart is defined as “equipment.” That definition applies to all golf carts, whether they be electric, gas, or hand.

In stroke play, the equipment of a fellow competitor is an “outside agency.” When your ball is stopped or deflected by an outside agency, it is officially called a “rub of the green.” There is no penalty to anyone, and you will play the ball as it lies [Rules 19-4 and 19-1].

In match play, there would also be no penalty if your ball hit another player’s equipment. However, the resulting procedure differs. Match play offers you two choices: (1) play the ball as it lies, or (2) cancel the stroke and hit again. If you choose to hit again, when you are on the teeing ground you may re-tee; if you are on the putting green you will place the ball; and if you are anywhere else you must drop a ball.

While we’re on the topic, you should know that when your ball strikes your own equipment, you must play that ball as it lies and add one penalty stroke to your score.

Linda 

Copyright © 2011 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #413-Moving a tee marker

Hi Linda,

We have a question about the markers on tee boxes.  The markers at our club are kind of small, log-shaped wooden pieces that outline the two sides of the tee box.  We have a number of tees where the fairway is not directly in front of the tee box, but at an angle to the left or the right of the tee.  Visually, I often find that the direction the tee marker is pointing, psychologically affects either the way I line up my drive, or even my swing itself.  I would find it easier if I were able to 'push' the log marker a little bit to the left or right, in order to point toward the fairway, rather than the rough which is directly in front of the tee box.  Am I allowed to do this, or must the marker always be pointing straight ahead?

Thanks and regards,

Lulu

Dear Lulu,

The markers do not always have to point straight ahead, but you cannot be the one to move them. If you realign them because you are unhappy with the direction in which they are pointing, you will be disqualified [Decision 11-2/2, b]. Should you unwittingly move the markers and someone points out that you are not permitted to do so, you can avoid disqualification by putting them back before you hit your tee shot. In that case, the penalty would be reduced to two strokes (loss of hole in match play).

This is an issue you need to bring up with the course superintendent.  It’s an easy problem to fix, and I can’t imagine why he would be unwilling to do so.

Linda 

Copyright © 2012 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #279-Marking in bunker

Linda, when marking ball before picking up rake in trap.....any special technique? whatever side of ball is available if prongs of middle of rake are holding the ball, for instance? or ball is trapped under handle?

Place is key word here too....... we place the ball throughout all steps of this process...... not drop at anytime......correct?

[Readers, this is a follow-up question to Ask Linda #276 and 277, where the ball is resting against a rake in a bunker.]

Dear Lou,

Marking in a bunker

It is not specifically required to mark the ball before moving the rake (or any other movable obstruction). The Rules of Golf only require that the ball be replaced if it moves after you pick up the rake [Rule 24-1]. However, in the interests of being accurate, when it is obvious that a ball will move as soon as it is free of the obstruction, I recommend that it be marked. This is especially appropriate for a ball that you know will roll a considerable distance.

There is no special technique for marking the ball. Mark it wherever it will best serve as a reminder of where it should be replaced. I use a tee to mark a ball in the sand, since it is less likely to disappear after you lift the rake and the ball rolls.

Placing or dropping

Here is an easy way to remember when to place a ball and when to drop it when you are taking relief from a movable obstruction. If the ball is already on the ground, you know where it lies and will therefore place it. If the ball is not lying on the ground (e.g., sitting on a folding chair), there is no specific spot to place it, so you will drop it. The procedure, if you have to drop, is to lift the ball, move the obstruction, and drop it as near as possible on the spot directly under where it lay on the obstruction.

Linda 

Copyright © 2011 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #278-–How many chances to place?

Hi Linda–

Often we drop twice on lateral hazards, and if ball rolls back twice into the hazard, we then place it.

How many times do you try to place the ball on the wall of the trap and watch it roll back.... before eventually placing it on a spot where it won't roll, and is no closer to the hole??  If that flat/level spot is more than one or two club lengths from original point..... does that matter?

Lou Lou

Dear Lou,

(Readers, this question is a follow-up to Ask Linda #277, where a player was taking free relief for a ball leaning against a rake in a bunker.)

Here is the procedure when you are required to place a ball in a bunker [Rule 20-3d, ii]:

1. Place the ball.

2. If the ball will not stay put, try one more time.

3. If the ball moves again, you must place it in the bunker at the nearest spot that is no closer to the hole where it will remain at rest.

You have two chances to place it before you must seek another spot. There is no limit on how far away from the original point you place the ball, but it must be placed in the bunker and it must be the nearest spot you encounter where the ball will not move that is no closer to the hole.

There is no penalty for any of this placing and replacing and placing in a different spot.

The procedure is the same when you are dropping away from a lateral water hazard. If the first drop rolls in the hazard, you try again. When you drop the second time, keep a close eye on where the ball hits the ground. If that second drop rolls into the hazard, you will place the ball on the spot where it hit the ground on that second drop. Now, if the ball that you place will not stay still, place it a second time. If it rolls again, you must place it at the nearest spot that is no closer to the hole and not in the hazard where it will remain at rest. Don’t forget to add the one-stroke penalty to your score when you are taking relief from a hazard.

Linda 

Copyright © 2011 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #410-Wrong ball

Linda, what happens if:

a) I play a wrong ball, or

b) the opposition plays the wrong ball, or

c) if I am playing as a team and one of us plays the wrong ball

Thanks,

Lulu

Dear Lulu,

In match play, if a player hits a wrong ball she loses the hole [Rule 15-3a].

In four-ball (also known as “better ball”) match play, if a player hits a wrong ball, she is disqualified from the hole. Her partner incurs no penalty, and will continue play of the hole. If the wrong ball belongs to another player (including the player’s partner), that player will place a ball on the spot where the wrong ball was hit and continue play [Rule 30-3c].

In stroke play, a competitor incurs a two-stroke penalty for hitting a wrong ball. She must correct her mistake by playing the correct ball. If the mistake is not corrected before she tees off on the next hole, she is disqualified. Any strokes made while playing the wrong ball do not count in the player’s score [Rule 15-3b]. If the player cannot find her ball, she will incur the two-stroke penalty for hitting a wrong ball, a one-stroke penalty for a lost ball, and will hit her next shot from where the original ball was last played.

Linda 

Copyright © 2012 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #277-Ball trapped by rake

Linda,

This one has been driving the boys crazy. We play at a course where rakes are both left in and out of the traps on a daily basis. We all agree our dilemma comes down to rules interpretation, but with that said… well…here we go. A trap wall is at about a 35 degree angle, the land above the wall is at the same steep angle. A rake lies completely in or half in said trap. If completely in the trap…the rake lies east to west. If half in…the rake lies north to south. A player’s shot/ball comes to rest and is being pinched by said rake at the highest point of the trap wall. Without the rake being present the ball would roll down the trap wall but remain in the bunker. We all agree the rake is an artificial moveable object [obstruction]. What we can't agree upon is whether the ball is "in or on" the moveable object. Because the rules take the time to talk about moveable objects and differentiate between just being able to move an object out of the way without moving the ball, many of us think that if the rake’s prongs (north to south) or handle (east to west) is holding the ball in place (90% of the ball’s weight is on the rake), the ball is in fact "in or on" the rake. Thus a drop is allowed at the point where the ball was picked up and then the resulting drop rules apply. If the artificial object can't be removed without affecting the lie of the ball, doesn't one have to come to the conclusion that the ball is again "in or on" the moveable object?  

Others believe the ball, in this instance, isn't "in or on" the rake, but up against it. That even if the object is holding the weight of the ball, the ball would have to be balancing on the rake, completely, in order for it to be considered "in or on" the rake. They further believe the ball is then to be placed in the exact spot it was removed from, even if this means digging a hole at the apex of the wall of the trap (that wasn't there to begin with) and indenting the ball into the sand so it doesn't roll down the wall of the trap again and again. Some then believe that if this step is taken one might or might not be improving his or her lie in the trap by making a perfect little indentation in the sand to hold the ball.

Your thoughts and/or exact way rules apply would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Lou Lou

Dear Lou,

Assuming the ball is touching some sand, it is not “in or on” the rake; it is leaning against it. It is not possible for a ball to be “in” a rake (“in” would apply to such obstructions as open trash receptacles); it is unlikely that a ball would be sitting on top of a rake, not touching the sand. Here is the proper relief procedure for a ball that is resting against a rake:

1. Mark the spot where the ball lies, and then lift the rake.

2. If the ball moves (and we both know that it will), you must try to replace it.

3. If the ball will not remain in place, you must place it in the hazard at the nearest spot where it will stay put that is no closer to the hole [Rule 20-3d, ii]. You are not permitted to press it into the sand to keep it from rolling away [Decision 20-3d/2].

This is the entire answer to your dilemma. It seems obvious to me that this is a hole where players should be instructed to place the rakes outside the bunker. A simple way to get this message across is to tape a “Please place rakes outside the bunker” notice on the handles of the rakes.

Here are two similar situations and their corresponding relief procedures:

1. Suppose that the ball is caught behind a rake in the very back of a bunker where it slopes down. When the rake is lifted, the ball rolls forward. The slope is so severe and the sand is so firm that the ball rolls closer to the hole when it is replaced. There is no spot behind where the ball lay where it will remain at rest. In this situation, the only choices would be to hit the ball from where you hit your previous shot or drop it outside the bunker on the line-of-sight to the hole. Either choice will add a one-stroke penalty to your score, since you are taking the ball out of the bunker. This seemingly unfair but inescapable penalty could be avoided if players were instructed to place rakes outside bunkers.

2. Suppose that the wall of the bunker is not part of the bunker. Sometimes bunker walls are covered in grass or consist of stacked turf. A bunker wall that is not covered by sand (or a similar added material) is not in the bunker [Definition of Bunker].

Let’s revisit the situation you described, only this time the ball will be stopped by a rake that is lying on a grass-covered wall surrounding the hazard. After you mark the ball and lift the rake, the ball rolls away. When you attempt to replace it (remember, you are not permitted to push it down into the ground to try to keep it from rolling), it rolls again. Since you are not in a bunker, you are now required to place the ball on the nearest spot where it will remain at rest that is not in the bunker and no closer to the hole. Note that this new spot may significantly improve your lie, as the nearest relief may turn out to be on level ground alongside or behind the bunker.

Sometimes relief procedures will give you grief (Situation #1), and sometimes they will bring you joy (Situation #2). Such is golf.

Linda 

Copyright © 2011 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.