Dear Linda,
I have read your column for years and recommended it to
numerous players.
The following situation caused many problems within our
group this past August during our Club Championship qualifier and I would
appreciate your thoughts. Many in our club think we made a real mess of things.
The Championship flight consisted of four players. Two of us
agreed to “play up” to that flight. If not, the two lower handicap players would
simply have gone directly to the finals. We thought this would make it a bit
more of a competition.
The four of us were scheduled to play two rounds of 18 holes
on consecutive days, no strokes, in order to determine which two players would
advance to the finals.
The first 18 holes were played without incident. The next
day it was extremely hot and humid, easily 90 degrees or higher. After 13 holes
of play, one of the players became very nauseous, with a severe headache. We
immediately thought of heat stroke and were correct. We called the pro shop and
asked that they quickly come out to the course to get her.
In the meantime, the sick player told us ‘I’m out. You three
continue to play.” This player is our club champion and had been for the last four
years. We were sort of in shock that this was happening. We did not want to
continue without her.
She was brought off the course and taken home. She did have
heat exhaustion, but luckily it was caught in time.
While still on the course, the three of us asked the
assistant pro: “What are our options with regard to the tournament?” He
indicated that the three of us could continue to play out the remaining 5 holes
or we could call the second round at 13 holes, bringing the total holes played
to 31 instead of 36. This would give the player who was taken off the course
the opportunity to stay in the tournament. At that point in the round, she had
the second lowest score of the four players and would have advanced. We agreed
to call the qualifier at 31 holes.
The next day, when asked, the player who was taken off the
course did not want to play in the final. She said she had withdrawn and did
not want to play, given the circumstances. So, the scores for the 31 holes were
tallied and the two lowest scores of the three went on to the final match.
Here are the questions: Under the Rules of Golf, did we have
the option to either continue to play without her or to call the second round
at 13 holes? Would the player that was taken off the course been able to say
that she was still in?
See, I told you it was a mess.
Thank you.
Lulu from Northport, Long Island, New York
Dear Lulu,
The Rules of Golf do not allow a Committee to reduce the
number of holes once play has begun in that round [Rule 33-1]. The assistant
pro erred in giving you the option to call the second round after 13 holes. The
round should have been completed by the three remaining players; the player who
withdrew was no longer in the competition.
The three remaining players who stopped play after 13 holes should
not be penalized, since they were following the instructions of someone who I assume
was given the authority to make such decisions by the Committee. If he did not
have this authority, the players should have discussed their reason for
discontinuing play with a Committee member as soon as practicable. The
Committee would then have to decide whether to penalize the players (the
penalty would be disqualification under Rule 6-8a) or to approve their decision
to stop play.
Since the round was not completed, the Committee had the
following choices if they deemed the players’ reason for stopping play
satisfactory:
(a) play the remaining five holes the following day;
(b) cancel the second round and replay it (all 18 holes) on
another day; or
(c) cancel the second round and reduce the qualifier to 18
holes.
The decision regarding whether the player who became ill
would be eligible to rejoin the competition would depend on what she meant when
she stated: “I’m out.” If her intention
was to withdraw (which seems likely, given what she said the following day), she
could not be reinstated. If she
meant that she could not complete that second round, and the round were
subsequently canceled, she could be reinstated.
The golfer who had been your club champion four years
running was absolutely correct in telling you to finish without her. The
assistant pro should have checked his rulebook before making his ruling.
Linda
Copyright © 2018 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
