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Rules of Golf: What's Your "Favorite" Stupid Rules?

Sean

Sean

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Seeing as how the rules of golf are as complicated, and sometimes as ridiculous, as the U.S. tax code, I thought if might be fun to list your favorite stupid rules. Duplicates are okay. :)

Two of my favorites are:

1. Some guy steps on you line on the green and you can't repair the spike marks he left.
2. You hit a beautiful drive down the middle of the fairway and end up in a divot and have to play it out of the divot.
 
I think the rule that bothers me the most is that you can only hit the ball once. If your club hits it twice on the same stroke it's a penalty. This happens to me a lot.
 
1. Some guy steps on you line on the green and you can't repair the spike marks he left.
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This is probably one of the dumbest rules I have ever heard of, and the one I was going to come and complain about.. What exactly does this do to mess with the integrity of the game?
 
I cant ground my club in a hazard. (I do anyway, they can take that rule and shove it)
 
Sean said:
Seeing as how the rules of golf are as complicated, and sometimes as ridiculous, as the U.S. tax code, I thought if might be fun to list your favorite stupid rules. Duplicates are okay. :)

Two of my favorites are:

1. Some guy steps on you line on the green and you can't repair the spike marks he left.
2. You hit a beautiful drive down the middle of the fairway and end up in a divot and have to play it out of the divot.
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I thought if you see someone walk in your line you can repair them, but if they were there before you got to the green you couldn't?
 
JRod said:
I thought if you see someone walk in your line you can repair them, but if they were there before you got to the green you couldn't?
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I am also under that impression. I believe you are entitled to whatever line you had as soon as the ball lands onto the green. So, if someone steps on your line and leaves spike marks, you are allowed to fix it due to it being created after your ball had come to rest on the green.
 
JRod said:
I thought if you see someone walk in your line you can repair them, but if they were there before you got to the green you couldn't?
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Yes.... Decision 16-1a/13 says:

16-1a/13 Line of Putt Damaged Accidentally by Opponent, Fellow-Competitor or Their Caddies

Q. An opponent, fellow-competitor or one of their caddies accidentally steps on and damages the player's line of putt. What is the ruling?

A. There is no penalty. Rule 1-2 is not applicable.

In equity (Rule 1-4), the player may have the line of putt restored to its original condition.

The player is entitled to the lie and line of putt he had when his ball came to rest. The line of putt may be restored by anyone.

If it is not possible to restore the line of putt, the player would be justified in requesting the Committee to grant relief. If the damage is severe enough, the Committee may declare the area to be ground under repair, in which case the competitor may take relief under Rule 25-1b(iii).
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I've found that most of the people ( I don't call them players) who b*tch about the rules really don't have a clue anyway. It's easiest to just ignore them until I see them in a competition... then I'll pay extra special attention to them. :dohanim:
 
Fourputt said:
I've found that most of the people ( I don't call them players) who b*tch about the rules really don't have a clue anyway. It's easiest to just ignore them until I see them in a competition... then I'll pay extra special attention to them. :dohanim:
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So basically you bashed everyone that has commented in this thread because this thread is "bitching" about which rules they dont like.
 
The rules really aren't really that ridiculous. I mean touching a bunker is testing conditions so technically it is an unfair advantage. However I would like to see the entire tour play softspikes
 
Bridges said:
So basically you bashed everyone that has commented in this thread because this thread is "bitching" about which rules they dont like.
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The title of this thread refers to "stupid rules", not to rules you don't like. When you actually take the time and effort to know the rules and understand what they are based on, none of them are stupid, so I stand by my earlier statement. Just because you don't like a rule, that doesn't make it "stupid". There may be rules that I'm not fond of (especially when I've just run afoul of one), but I know the reason for it and understand why it's there.

I've played the game for some 40 years, and I've made a study of the rules of golf for more than 20 years. I've read much of the history of the rules and I've studied the principles which the rules have been developed from. None of the rules are "stupid" or capricious. Each one has a good, logical and consistent reason being the way it is. In my experience, people who b*tch about them have never bothered to actually learn them. They cry about this and that without proposing a workable alternative. Or like the OP's first point, they b*tch about not being able do something which the rules actually do allow them to do.

I'm more than willing to debate or explain or simply discuss the rules with you anytime, but threads like this one just help to promote and perpetuate myths and fallacies. For whatever reason, too many players who consider themselves knowledgeable about the game know surprisingly little about the rules. They know the equipment, the swing, the courses, they know all about the PGA Tour, but the last thing that they bother with is the rules, if they ever even consider it. Many will even tell you how boring the rules are.... then with the next breath they b*tch about this or that rule without a clue what they are talking about.

So you guys just b*tch away.... have a great back-slapping session. Just remember that we had this discussion if you ever actually bother to learn anything about the rules.
 
Another quote from Chi Chi Rodriguez found in a book of golf quotes I got (my favorite one currently in my signature):

"I think most of the rules of golf stink. They were written by the guys who can't even break a hundred"
 
Fourputt said:
The title of this thread refers to "stupid rules", not to rules you don't like. When you actually take the time and effort to know the rules and understand what they are based on, none of them are stupid, so I stand by my earlier statement. Just because you don't like a rule, that doesn't make it "stupid". There may be rules that I'm not fond of (especially when I've just run afoul of one), but I know the reason for it and understand why it's there.

I've played the game for some 40 years, and I've made a study of the rules of golf for more than 20 years. I've read much of the history of the rules and I've studied the principles which the rules have been developed from. None of the rules are "stupid" or capricious. Each one has a good, logical and consistent reason being the way it is. In my experience, people who b*tch about them have never bothered to actually learn them. They cry about this and that without proposing a workable alternative. Or like the OP's first point, they b*tch about not being able do something which the rules actually do allow them to do.

I'm more than willing to debate or explain or simply discuss the rules with you anytime, but threads like this one just help to promote and perpetuate myths and fallacies. For whatever reason, too many players who consider themselves knowledgeable about the game know surprisingly little about the rules. They know the equipment, the swing, the courses, they know all about the PGA Tour, but the last thing that they bother with is the rules, if they ever even consider it. Many will even tell you how boring the rules are.... then with the next breath they b*tch about this or that rule without a clue what they are talking about.

So you guys just b*tch away.... have a great back-slapping session. Just remember that we had this discussion if you ever actually bother to learn anything about the rules.
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I'm no rules expert, but I have Four Putt's back on this one. I like the fact golf has a stringent set of rules. And they're not that difficult to understand. Take some time and they can be understood. Like the USPAP, another set of rules that many complain about.

Kevin
 
Fourputt said:
The title of this thread refers to "stupid rules", not to rules you don't like. When you actually take the time and effort to know the rules and understand what they are based on, none of them are stupid, so I stand by my earlier statement. Just because you don't like a rule, that doesn't make it "stupid". There may be rules that I'm not fond of (especially when I've just run afoul of one), but I know the reason for it and understand why it's there.

I've played the game for some 40 years, and I've made a study of the rules of golf for more than 20 years. I've read much of the history of the rules and I've studied the principles which the rules have been developed from. None of the rules are "stupid" or capricious. Each one has a good, logical and consistent reason being the way it is. In my experience, people who b*tch about them have never bothered to actually learn them. They cry about this and that without proposing a workable alternative. Or like the OP's first point, they b*tch about not being able do something which the rules actually do allow them to do.

I'm more than willing to debate the rules with you anytime, but threads like this one just help to promote and perpetuate myths and fallacies. For whatever reason, too many players who consider themselves knowledgeable about the game know surprisingly little about the rules. They know the equipment, the swing, the courses, they know all about the PGA Tour, but the last thing that they bother with is the rules, if they ever even consider it. Many will even tell you how boring the rules are.... then with the next breath they b*tch about this or that rule without a clue what they are talking about.

So you guys just b*tch away.... have a great back-slapping session. Just remember that we had this discussion if you ever actually bother to learn anything about the rules.
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Im sorry that is just not fair. You are judging people's thoughts on the game and their knowledge of the game based on them not liking a rule. I know the rules quite well and think some are ridiculous, does that make them boring to me?

Everything changes and evolves with time. Have you ever taken a look at the actual laws in some states? Some of them are the most ridiculous things that have ever been written. Things like putting salt on a railroad can be punishable by death or in your own state of CO, it is illegal to loan a vacuum cleaner to a neighbor. Sure they had some sort of idea behind them at the time they were put in place, but that does not mean they should not be changed, altered, or tweaked.

While tradition is a great thing in many walks of life, including sports, some things need updating and have been overlooked for years. I agree that more need to learn the actual rules, but many need updating.
 
JB said:
Im sorry that is just not fair. You are judging people's thoughts on the game and their knowledge of the game based on them not liking a rule. I know the rules quite well and think some are ridiculous, does that make them boring to me?
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No I base them on my own experience that those who tend to b*tch the loudest know the least about what they are bitching at.

JB said:
Everything changes and evolves with time. Have you ever taken a look at the actual laws in some states? Some of them are the most ridiculous things that have ever been written. Things like putting salt on a railroad can be punishable by death or in your own state of CO, it is illegal to loan a vacuum cleaner to a neighbor. Sure they had some sort of idea behind them at the time they were put in place, but that does not mean they should not be changed, altered, or tweaked.

While tradition is a great thing in many walks of life, including sports, some things need updating and have been overlooked for years. I agree that more need to learn the actual rules, but many need updating.
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Which is why the ruling bodies hold joint rules conferences and publish a new rule book every 4 years. They do that so that they won't get into a situation of leaving an archaic or unworkable rule on the books once it has been proven to be in need of change.

Here is my point. The OP makes 2 points in his opening statement. the first one is just plain wrong because what he complains about is actually allowed. His second point is irrelevant because in the rules there is no such thing as "fairway". The rules see a divot in the fairway as no different from a divot in the rough. It's all "through the green". Part of the problem besides this is identifying what is a divot and at what point should relief from such no longer be given. It becomes too difficult to manage because at some point it becomes purely a judgment call, and the rules prefer a decision to be black and white... it either is or it isn't.

So his entire premise is shot down and it only exists in the first place because he lacks a working knowledge of the topic.

This leads into the only inconsistency which I've found in the Rules of Golf, and that is the embedded ball rule. This is the only rule which actually attempts to differentiate between fairway (closely mowed areas) and rough. In my opinion this rule should either be applied through the green , or it should be deleted completely (and man, would we see some bitching then). There is a commonly instituted local rule which does allow relief through the green, and I feel it should be the standard rule, not optional. But as long as the rule is written as it is, I'll accept it as being the product of experts who know more than I do about the principles behind it. I may see it as inconsistent to my way of thinking, but it still isn't "stupid".
 
We will have to agree to disagree. Because I know the rules quite well and find a few of them absurd and archaic. That does not mean I know very little.

And holding a rules committee every 4 years does little to increase confidence.
 
I guess a little more room for interpretation of the rules that don't involve directly making contact with ball,improving lies,scoring, etc would be nice,especially in cases where the normal flow of a round is disrupted by unusual circumstances. I mean take Julie Inkster,I know the rules state you can't use a training aid but give me a break.Was she really gaining any advantage or trying to through her actions ? No. Would I support letting Julie laying down an alignment stick at every hole before every shot ?No.

I live in the "perfect" world of the National Electrical Code. There are some instances where an installation following the letter of the code book can actually lead to other problems due to the uniqueness of a situation. It really is nice when you can come together with the AHJ, (authority having juristiction)put your heads togther and come up with a solution that may not meet the rules word for word but meet the intent of code.

I guess the thing that upsets me with rulings like Julie's is I'm sure the rule was in place to discourage someone gaining a competitive advantage over the field with a training aid,she broke the letter of the rule but I don't believe that her intent was to gain an advantage which I why I believe the rule is in place.She was just a 50 yr old women trying to stay loose after a 30 minute wait before a long par 5.

Those are the kind of interpretations/rules that bother me sometimes.
 
clam fist said:
Lol. You just complained about a rule!
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Bridges said:
WOW, Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed. :D
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Fourputt is probably the most rules-knowledgeable guy I have seen on any forum. I knew he would post in this thread eventually and I had a pretty good idea of what he was going to say. So he's going to be pro-rules in any argument. He is stating his opinions, and I guarantee you if you have a rules question you need an answer you're going to be glad he's here to answer it. We've "discussed" things I do that aren't allowed by the rules (such as using a club logo ball to putt with at a nice place I'm playing for the first time) but I know he'll most likely have the correct answer to any question. And if he doesn't know, he'll find it for you.

I don't agree with him that every rule has its place but that's OK because I'm not playing in competition, and I'm not playing against him. There is a time and place for playing strictly by the book and times where things can slide and no one is hurt either way.

But overall, Rick's a good guy to have around.
 
Ya I was just trying to lighten the mood in here a little because I have a feeling this debate isnt over lol
 
And if you PM him with a question, he gets right back to you. A class act all the way. He's answered a couple for me and I appreciate it greatly.

How many of you have a copy of the rules of golf in your golf bag? I know I do. Learned that early on.

Kevin
 
Esox said:
And if you PM him with a question, he gets right back to you. A class act all the way. He's answered a couple for me and I appreciate it greatly.

How many of you have a copy of the rules of golf in your golf bag? I know I do. Learned that early on.

Kevin
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I do too. Always should have one.
 
clam fist said:
Lol. You just complained about a rule!
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No I didn't. I simply stated that I seem to see an inconsistency in one rule, and I stated my reasons for it. I even proposed a workable modification for it which I feel is in keeping with the overall principles behind the rule. That is a huge difference from simply complaining about it.
 
Esox said:
And if you PM him with a question, he gets right back to you. A class act all the way. He's answered a couple for me and I appreciate it greatly.

How many of you have a copy of the rules of golf in your golf bag? I know I do. Learned that early on.

Kevin
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I got one with my USGA membership. Best money I spent on golf.

And believe me, I am not wanting to start anything. I play for fun. Life is too full of struggle for me to add to it. There's room in the game for the sticklers and the hackers. Lol. It takes all kinds and the game is better for it.
 
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