Hi Linda,
Hoping you can clarify this for me.
I recently played in my club championship tournament with
successful results. (I shot my best round in 4 years). I did win a fairly
decent prize.
Three days after the tournament, as I was preparing for my
next round, I noticed a club in my bag that was not mine. It appears that
someone, (possibly myself?) may have picked up the wrong wedge, greenside, and
either handed it to me, or possibly they picked up mine and I picked up the
wedge that was left. I am surmising that it would have had to have been very
late in the round, such as one of the last 2 holes or even after the last hole,
because while the difference was minute, I did notice it immediately upon
looking at my clubs 3 days later, and I don’t believe I would have pulled it
out of my bag to use it during the tournament without noticing the difference.
Another possibility is that after the tournament round was complete,
someone switched the clubs while my bag sat outside the clubhouse.
My question is: Does this affect my tournament score?
(I won by 3 strokes). I have scoured the Rules of Golf and many websites
and cannot find anything that addresses this.
Thank you,
Lou
Dear Lou,
In scouring the Rules, you must not have made it to the very
last Rule, #34, which contains the answer to your question.
Rule 34-1b states that a penalty must not be imposed after
the close of the competition. There are exceptions, but discovering an extra
club in your bag three days later is not one of them.
You can stop feeling guilty, and start enjoying your newfound
fame and (small) fortune with a clear conscience.
Linda
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