Dear Linda,
Last summer playing in our Senior Championship I marked another player's ball on the putting green. I did this in the interest of saving time, without his permission, as one might typically do in a casual weekend game. A third player became quite agitated when I did this, and stressed the point that I must replace the ball and have the other player mark it himself, saying that if he replaced the ball he would incur a penalty. The fourth in our group agreed that this was the case, and I complied without dissent.
This minor event was forgotten until on the TV this weekend at The Players Championship I saw a player's ball marked on the green of a drivable par 4 after having been waved up by the group ahead. This sent me to the rulebook and as best as I can tell:
1. Marking a ball without permission is indeed against the rules but there is no penalty for doing so, and
2. A player can always replace his own ball, even if some knucklehead marked it without permission (even though this might not be the best practice).
So it seems to me this commonly held belief about replacing a ball marked by the wrong player is what amounts to an old wives' tale. Do I understand this correctly?
Lou in Rye, NY
Dear Lou,
I haven’t heard that fairy tale in a long time. It is wrong, of course, and your understanding is correct.
In stroke play, there is no penalty if another player marks and lifts your ball on the green, although he should not do so if there is no permission or request. The ball must be replaced by either the owner of the ball or the player who lifted it [Rule 14.1b].
In match play, an opponent who marks and lifts your ball without permission or request incurs one penalty stroke [Rule 9.5b].
Linda
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