Hello Linda,
We had a situation today that went as follows:
A player in our group had to hit a provisional. We looked
for the lost ball and the player said she ABANDONS her ball. As she
was walking back to her provisional, another member in the group found the
original ball.
The player who lost the ball thought she could play her
provisional, as she abandoned what she thought was her first “lost”
ball.
I just want clarification on this, as Rule 27-2c states that
if the original ball is neither lost nor out of bounds, then it must be played.
However, if she struck her provisional after stating she abandoned her
original shot, before the lost ball was found, then she was OK to play the
provisional.
Thanks for your interpretation on this.
Lulu from Burbank, California
Dear Lulu,
If the player’s original ball is found within five minutes
of beginning search, she must abandon the provisional ball and continue play
with the original ball [Rule 27-2c]. Under this circumstance, if she plays the
provisional ball, she has played a wrong ball and the provisions of Rule 15-3
(Wrong Ball) apply.
If the player hits her provisional before the original is found, it becomes her ball in play only if
the provisional is played from the area where the original ball is likely to be
or from a spot closer to the hole than that area [Rule 27-2b].
A ball is not lost by
virtue of the player declaring it lost. As the expression goes, “saying
doesn’t make it so.” A ball is deemed “lost” when it meets one of the five
requirements under the Definition of “Lost Ball.” Please take a moment to read
that very important Definition.
Linda
Copyright © 2018 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
