Dear readers,
There are so many
questions here that I am going to depart from my usual format and place my
answer after each question.
Dear Linda,
I know it sounds a bit tedious asking similar questions over
and over again, but I have another query about looking for and finding a lost
ball. The scenario is:
A player drove off from the tee on a short par 3 into
the rough. Everybody thought it might be found so proceeded forward. After
searching for a couple of minutes, the player said, ''I'll start heading back
to the tee in order to save time and the rest of the people
can continue to look.” This player hit the second ball and ended up right
next to the pin. The questions are:
1. I understand
once this player hit the second ball, that ball will become the ball in
play and she'll have to continue with the second ball. However, say if the
original ball was found after she tees the ball but before she hits it,
does she have to play the original ball, if the ball was found within the 5
minutes?
Answer:
A ball that is teed up on the teeing ground is not in play
until the player makes a stroke at it. If the player’s original ball is found
within five minutes, and the player has teed up another ball but has not
attempted to hit it, the player must
continue play with the original ball [Decision 27-1/1]. However, she does have the option to hit the teed ball. If her original ball is unplayable, one of the relief options available to her is to play another ball under stroke and distance. If she decides to hit the teed ball, the original would be lost by Definition.
2. What happens
if the ball was found within the 5 minutes in very thick rough, and she
was standing on the tee realising where it was found and pretended she didn't
notice the other players had found the ball and she teed off anyway. Which ball
does she have to play? And if the second ball was hit into a water hazard, can
she then say, “Oh, I didn't realise you've found my ball and as it's
within 5 minutes I'm going to play it.” Can she do that?
Answer:
The player is entitled to hit another ball under stroke and
distance at any time [Rule 27-1a]. As soon as she plays another ball from the
tee, it is in play and the original ball is lost [Definition of “Lost Ball”].
In both instances, she has to play the second ball that she hit from the tee.
3. Another
scenario:
Player A hits her ball a long way but into thick rough
on a very short par 4. So, she declared she would play a provisional. This
ball went very well but a little shorter than the first. I understand you can
continue to play the second ball until you reach the area where the first ball
went. She played the second ball and somehow holed it. Can she now declare her
first ball is lost and abandon looking for it, or can the opponent go and try
to find it within 5 minutes and force her to play it?
Answer:
A player cannot declare her ball “lost” [Decision 27/16].
The ball is only lost when it meets one of the conditions in the Definition of
“Lost Ball.” If the original ball is found (by anyone) within five minutes, and
before the player lifts her ball out of the hole [Decision 27-2b/2], the player
must continue play with the original ball and abandon the provisional [Decision
27-2c/2]. Her opponent has every right to search for the player’s original
ball; in this instance, it is highly advantageous for her to do so.
Thank you.
Regards,
Lulu from Rutland, UK
Linda
Copyright © 2017 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
