Dear readers,
Judging by several responses I have received to #1868, there is a bit of confusion about the third bullet in Rule 5.5a. This is the Rule that states, “Strokes made by a player in playing out a hole whose result has been decided [are not practice strokes].” Perhaps this Rule will be easier to understand if I paint a picture.
Jack, Bill, and Sue are paired together in an individual Stableford tournament. The maximum score where you will receive points is set at net bogey. On a 340-yard Par-4 with a pond to carry right in front of the tee, Bill and Sue make it safely over onto the fairway, but Jack, whose handicap is 8, inexplicably tops his first two efforts into the pond. The best he can score on the hole is 7, which is a net double bogey and will give him no Stableford points. The result of the hole for Jack has already been decided – he will get no points.
Instead of walking along watching Sue and Bill play the hole, he decides to play along with them. He joins them on the other side of the pond, drops a ball in the fairway, and hits it into deep rough on the right side. Bill has hit his second shot onto the green, and Sue’s ball lies on the fairway, ten yards off the green. Jack wants to continue playing, but he doesn’t want to hold anyone up, so he lifts his ball out of the rough, tosses it onto the fairway, and hits it onto the green. All three players complete the hole and move on to the next one.
Nothing that Jack has done is considered practice. He has incurred no penalties. His result (zero points) was decided when he topped his second tee shot into the pond. He is permitted to play out the hole for fun. He has taken care not to delay anyone’s play, and he has not had to stand around doing nothing while Bill and Sue complete the hole. Rule 5.5a is what I would call a kind Rule. There aren’t a whole lot of those, so let’s enjoy the few we have and give Jack a break.
