Linda,
Today my wife and I played in the club mixed foursomes event
and the following question arose.
In this event men are required to tee off from the white
tees on odd-numbered holes and women from the red tees on even-numbered holes. My
question is as to what should happen when either a provisional ball is played
from the tee or a team decides to play 3 off the tee.
Decision 29-1/3 makes it clear that the player who did not
hit the original tee shot should play the provisional ball, or 3 off the tee, but
the question is as to from where they play it. Two views have been expressed:
1. As the teeing ground for that hole is pre-determined –white
tees for odd holes and red tees for even holes– then the provisional should be
played from there. So men would hit from the red (women’s) tee and women from
the white (men’s) tee.
2. The teeing ground is gender specific, so that if a male
plays the provisional ball he should hit from the white (men’s) tee and if it
is the woman who hits the provisional she should hit from the red (women’s)
tee.
As the penalty for playing from the wrong place and not
correcting it is disqualification, the answer is important and I have not been
able to find a rule or decision that gives a definitive answer.
Can you assist?
Regards,
Lou from Adelaide, South Australia
Dear Lou,
Yes. The provisional ball must be played from the same tee
where the original ball was played. For example, if the man hits a ball from
the white tee markers that may be lost or out of bounds, and the team decides
to hit a provisional ball, the woman must hit the provisional ball from the
white tee markers.
Decision 29/2 describes an analogous situation. In this
Decision, a man hits his tee shot out of bounds from the back tee in mixed
foursomes. The next stroke, which will be hit by the woman, must be played from
the back tee.
In the case where the woman’s tee shot played from the
forward tee requires a replay, the man must hit the next shot from the forward
tee.
If you think about it for a minute, it will make sense to
you. The ball is in play as soon as it is hit from the teeing ground. Once the
ball is in play, all future procedures that involve hitting a ball from the
spot where the previous shot was hit will require play from that precise
location.
Linda
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