The rules of golf are hard! Fortunately, we have the guru. Our Rules Guy knows the book front to back. Do you have a question? He has all the answers.
Hypothetical Question: How many penalty strokes could a player get off the tee? My thoughts: He is late for his tee time, asks his opponent what club he used, tees up in front of the marker, has too many clubs in his bag, uses an illegal club or ball, and then hits out of bounds. Your thoughts? -Todd Sherstad, via email
First thought: Rules Guy needs more coffee to tackle this convoluted theoretical theory, but then enough caffeine.
In 2023, Rule 1.3c(4) was designed to help limit the number of penalty strokes players could accumulate between strokes, provided they were unaware of the violations at the time. So, theoretically, absent that awareness, a player should only be able to throw three penalty shots in one stroke – two for a violation and one for the stroke and the distance after hitting out of bounds.
That said, given the list you provided, Todd, there is an even easier answer, and it involves letters rather than numbers, specifically “DQ”, as disqualified is what one would be for using a non-conforming club or ball to make a stroke under Rule 4.1a.
For more penalty guidance from our guru, read on…
On a trip to Myrtle Beach, we were part of a great outing at a course called Kings North. The group behind us teed off on the correct hole, the fifth, but played in the wrong direction, to the fairway of the wrong hole, the sixth. Once they realized their mistake, they picked up their balls and returned to the tee box, re-teeing without penalty (and much delay for the other groups on the course). I believe they should have hit 3 off the tee, even if there was no OB, I think they could play the hole as an 800 yard par 4. What does Rules Guy say? -RJ Sulli, via email
Interesting, RJ, very interesting! It is a matter of geometry as to which Rule applies, but both have the same result. First of all, if these discombobulated golfers have been turned and are playing the wrong way, chances are they are putting their balls on the wrong side of the tee markers. In that case, they played from outside the teeing area, had two penalty strokes, and were actually required – as you noted – to re-tee (correctly), hit 3, because the shot from outside the teeing area does not count.
That said, if I had managed to play from the correct rectangle of the teeing area, then to go back and play from the tee again would really be playing under a shot and a distance, hitting 3. Or, as you suggested, perhaps tongue-in-cheek, they could have played it as an 800-yard par 4 – without, no one begging, hitting.
