Thanks
Lulu from Texas
Dear Lulu,
What are we, five years old? No, it is not correct to hit
the unwelcome ball. In fact, if the golfer on the green hits it off the green,
she has taken a practice stroke and has incurred a two-stroke penalty (loss of
hole in match play). She may, however, mark and lift it, if it is in anyone’s
way. (Don’t let her forget to replace it – you don’t want to start World War
III over an etiquette breach that may have simply been a miscalculation.)
This is an etiquette issue. The player behind your group
should wait until your group is off the green to hit his ball. He should also
yell “fore” if there is even a remote possibility that his ball will hit
someone. One of the players in your group should politely ask the offender to
refrain from hitting until you are out of range, and to yell “fore” if he has
hit the ball further than humanly possible (the usual excuse). I would like to
hope that he has the courtesy to apologize.
Linda
Copyright © 2015 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.