Linda,
While waiting on the tee for the group ahead to locate a
ball, we observed Player A heading back to the tee. Obviously he was returning
to play another ball, as his first ball could not be found. As Player A was
teeing up the 2nd ball, one of the players in his group yelled and signaled
that the original ball had been found. Player A had not addressed the 2nd ball
on the tee and as he bent to pick up the ball one of the golfers in our group,
Player B, told him he had abandoned his original ball and had to play a second
ball under penalty of stroke and distance. I said that as he had not addressed
the 2nd ball he could proceed to return and play his original without penalty.
Player B advised Player A that at the precise moment he turned to return to the
tee he was abandoning his original ball and had no choice but to play a second ball
under penalty of stroke and distance. Player A did play a second ball from the
tee and incurred the stroke and distance penalty. Was this the correct thing to
do?
Player A had looked for his original ball for more than five
minutes and I think that would have been enough to invoke the lost ball rule,
but that is a separate issue. If all of the above had transpired within the
five minutes allowed what would have been the ruling?
Lou from Hemet, California
Dear Lou,
There is no reference in the rulebook to abandoning your
ball with relation to a lost ball. A ball is lost if it is not found within
five minutes after beginning search; it is not lost simply because the player
headed back to the tee to play another ball under stroke and distance
[Definition of “Lost Ball”].
When the player plays from the teeing ground, the ball is
not in play until he makes a stroke at it. Whether or not he has addressed the
ball has no bearing on the ball being in play.
If the player’s ball were found within five minutes, and
before he made a stroke at another ball from the teeing ground, he would be
required to continue play with the original ball.
If more than five minutes have elapsed, the original ball is
lost by Definition and the player is required
to play another ball under stroke and distance.
Linda
Copyright © 2017 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
