Is it authorized to faucet down grass across the gap earlier than placing?

The Guidelines of Golf are tough! Fortunately, we’ve obtained the guru. Our Guidelines Man is aware of the e book entrance to again. Obtained a query? He’s obtained all of the solutions.

This morning, a gentleman in our foursome made a behavior of tamping down relatively forcefully across the gap along with his putter (all the time in his line of putt, naturally). Once I query this “gardening,” he claimed the greenskeepers weren’t doing their job correctly once they modified holes. I occur to know higher, since I’m a type of greenskeepers. What rule ought to I quote? —Bob Keifling, Seibring, Fla.

Clearly, you are the gentleman because you selected to take the excessive route relatively than tamp forcefully round this clod’s noggin!

Subsequent time, let the foundations try this for you. Gamers might restore “harm” to the placing inexperienced, which incorporates the opening and the realm round it, even when doing so improves the road of play. However (!) regular upkeep practices, pure put on and pure floor imperfections aren’t harm as outlined by Rule 13.1c(2) and might not be repaired.

If his tamping alters the bottom and improves a situation affecting the stroke, reminiscent of line of play, then Rule 8.1a applies, and he will get the final penalty of two strokes in stroke play and lack of gap in match play. Now who’s not doing his job correctly?

For extra green-related steerage from our guru, learn on …

I used to be known as out for aligning my ball for a putt after putting my ball after which lifting my ball marker — that I can not regulate the ball except the marker remains to be in place, and if I have been caught doing it once more I’d be penalized. But within the R&A’s rule clarification 14.2c/1, the ball might be aligned in any manner as long as its vertical distance to the bottom stays the identical, I don’t see any reference to a ball marker being required when lining up a putt. Are you able to make clear? —Mark O’Neill, by way of electronic mail

We are able to, and we are going to, forthwith. Unhappy to say, you have been known as out accurately. Rotating the ball is taken into account “lifting” beneath Rule 14.1, and also you solely get the best to carry the ball on the placing inexperienced after you mark it first.

So, in case you rotate the ball when it isn’t marked you get one penalty stroke — because it didn’t change place you needn’t fear about changing it. Please see Rule 14.1a.

The clarification you cited refers to how the ball really will get changed — you may change the ball in virtually any orientation; the aligning of the ball isn’t your concern right here — but it surely doesn’t tackle whether or not or not the ball was marked when initially lifted, as that’s a separate concern.