I’ve been writing about The Rules of Golf for a few years now and I’m always impressed by how comprehensive and fair they are.
The R&A and USGA are constantly monitoring and working on solutions to make the Rules as equitable and understandable at possible, and they do a fabulous job of insuring we all have clear and fair guidelines for what to do in any situation we might encounter on the golf course.
But everyone has their own views on the Rules and will be able to think of at least one or two that treats them unfairly on a regular basis.
I was debating this the other day when a clubhouse discussion started up. A friend asked the group, “If you were in charge of the Rules, what would you change?” This is what I came up with…
Stroke and distance for Out of Bounds
Oh no! Does that mean I have to go back to the tee?
(Image credit: Kevin Murray)
This is one I’ve talked a good deal about. I just don’t think it’s fair.
If you stand up to tee off on a par-4, swing at 200mph, miss the ball completely and hurl yourself off your feet, you can pick yourself up, dust yourself off and have another go, playing two.
However, if you make a smooth swing and perfect connection with the ball but it gets the cruellest of bounces and ends up trickling just off the edge of the course and out of bounds, you have to re-tee and play three from the same spot.
That seems too harsh to me. I think you should be playing two.
If I were in charge, I would say ‘no penalty for going out of bounds.’ But that’s probably just coming from someone who goes out of bounds rather too frequently!
Although… I do think it could make golf more exciting as people would go for their shots a little more often… Just a thought.
The drop
(Image credit: Kenny Smith)
We now drop the ball from knee height, whether it’s free or penalty relief we’re taking. That’s a bit more forgiving than the shoulder-high drop which was rather unpredictable. But why do you have to drop it all?
If you’ve incurred a penalty, why do you need to be further penalised by then potentially dropping it into a divot hole or other similarly unfortunate lie?
If you’re in a position where free relief is available, why can’t you find yourself a nice lie?
I would say it would simplify the Rules and make…
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