Linda,
It was raining, and on completing 9 holes decided it was too
wet to carry on and played 16, 17 and 18, at which point the rain had stopped
and we decided to finish the 6 remaining holes (10–15). Is this permissible in
a Stableford competition? Thank you.
Lulu from Ickenham, Middlesex, UK
Dear Lulu,
No.
Stableford is a form of stroke play [Rule 32-1]. In a
stroke-play competition, players are required to play each hole of the
stipulated round in their correct order [Rule 3-1]. “Stipulated round” is defined as playing the
holes of the course in their correct sequence.
The 16th hole was the first hole you played out
of order. You and your fellow competitors would each incur a two-stroke penalty
[Rule 11-5, Rule 11-4b], and would be required to correct the error by hitting
a ball from the correct teeing ground (Hole #10) before teeing off on the next hole. Since all of you teed off on
#17 after playing #16, you would all be disqualified.
Linda
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