If You Could Eliminate OB Would You?

JB

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I don’t mean moving land, but rather creating equals penalties for those shots missed.
 
I don’t mean moving land, but rather creating equals penalties for those shots missed.

That would fundamentally change the game, wouldn’t it?


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Yes I would, it would speed up play and free up swings.
 
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That would fundamentally change the game, wouldn’t it?


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Maybe? It could speed it up.
 
No I wouldn’t. Many course have private property next to the hole. That in my opinion should be out of bounds.
 
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No I wouldn’t. Many course have private property next to the hole. That in my opinion should be out of bounds.

Why not play it like red stakes where you are still penalized but get the distance?
 
I'm not a fan of ambiguous rules. Every time someone tells me "just drop it where you think it went out of bounds", my head hurts. I mean, if I had an idea where it went out of bounds, I wouldn't still be looking for it. Same goes with a WH or LH. Without evidence of where it went in, it's difficult to determine the proper location to drop.

For those who want to change the rule to speed up the game (and help score, too, maybe?), I'd suggest eliminating the "stroke" portion of "stroke and distance. If you hit one OB, then just hit another off the tee and count it as your 2nd instead of your 3rd. Not time spent looking for the first ball at all. Not overly penal.

Yes, it would dramatically change the game, but if that's where the Rules went, then that's where I'd go.
 
I just play OB as a lateral hazard now, so if that is viable that's the direction I'd go.
 
Why not play it like red stakes where you are still penalized but get the distance?

Stroke and distance penalty (OB) is a primary defense of some courses, which I like and respect.
 
I'm not a fan of ambiguous rules. Every time someone tells me "just drop it where you think it went out of bounds", my head hurts. I mean, if I had an idea where it went out of bounds, I wouldn't still be looking for it. Same goes with a WH or LH. Without evidence of where it went in, it's difficult to determine the proper location to drop.

For those who want to change the rule to speed up the game (and help score, too, maybe?), I'd suggest eliminating the "stroke" portion of "stroke and distance. If you hit one OB, then just hit another off the tee and count it as your 2nd instead of your 3rd. Not time spent looking for the first ball at all. Not overly penal.

Yes, it would dramatically change the game, but if that's where the Rules went, then that's where I'd go.

I've never considered "penalty shots" at all relevant to speed of play.
Most of the slow play I observe is people not getting to their ball on time and, or, ready to play their next shot.
And yesterday I fell in with a a threesome who were slow players. A major reason for their slow play was choosing the wrong club. Time and time again each guy had his iron approach carrying between 10 and 20 yards short of the front of the green. I don't believe one of the three guys I played with hit a single green in regulation , and that does slow up play.
 
I'm not a fan of ambiguous rules. Every time someone tells me "just drop it where you think it went out of bounds", my head hurts. I mean, if I had an idea where it went out of bounds, I wouldn't still be looking for it. Same goes with a WH or LH. Without evidence of where it went in, it's difficult to determine the proper location to drop.

For those who want to change the rule to speed up the game (and help score, too, maybe?), I'd suggest eliminating the "stroke" portion of "stroke and distance. If you hit one OB, then just hit another off the tee and count it as your 2nd instead of your 3rd. Not time spent looking for the first ball at all. Not overly penal.

Yes, it would dramatically change the game, but if that's where the Rules went, then that's where I'd go.

I agree. Just make the OB shot the penalty rather than stroke and distance.


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I've never considered "penalty shots" at all relevant to speed of play.
Most of the slow play I observe is people not getting to their ball on time and, or, ready to play their next shot.
And yesterday I fell in with a a threesome who were slow players. A major reason for their slow play was choosing the wrong club. Time and time again each guy had his iron approach carrying between 10 and 20 yards short of the front of the green. I don't believe one of the three guys I played with hit a single green in regulation , and that does slow up play.

Well, considering you're allotted 5 minutes to look for your ball before the penalty, I'm figuring it'd save a bit of time.
 
Why not play it like red stakes where you are still penalized but get the distance?
This is exactly what I would like to see! Just play it like a red hazard. It's still out of bounds so you can't go into people's yards but play it like a red hazard!

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Well, considering you're allotted 5 minutes to look for your ball before the penalty, I'm figuring it'd save a bit of time.

For OB it would be unusual for a player to spend time "looking for the ball".
The standard is that if one suspects a ball might be OB, he plays a provisional (which has always been allowed by the Rules to actually help the speed of play).
Searching for a lost ball may take up to 5 minutes, but lost ball situations are usually not related to OB situations. Provisional for lost ball is allowed, but people rarely use that option.
 
I’d straight up burn every white stake I could find. Or, replace with red stakes. My version is much more appealing though to anyone who has found their ball teetering on the OB line
 
I would have no issue having OB changed to play like a lateral hazard. It's how I see most play it anyway.
 
I would for the exterior of the course, interior out of bounds is foolish and time consuming
 
I absolutely would if anything to speed up play. Plus it might make it a little easier for new golfers.
 
I'm torn on this. My course has a ton of white stakes where the course borders on back yards and small streets. On the one hand I'd enjoy no longer "hitting 3!" but on the other hand the course wouldnt play the same and ratings/slope would all need to be adjusted.
 
I would for the exterior of the course, interior out of bounds is foolish and time consuming

"In course OB" is usually for a driving range or to protect an adjacent fairway, both sensible reasons for the OB stakes.
 
Further, I tend to be in favor of anything that speeds up play but I find red hazards more time consuming then white. When a guy blasts his tee ball off a roof he grabs another and reloads. Worst case hits a provisional. When a guy rolls into a lateral he looks in the weeds until his 5 minutes are up because quite often its playable if you can find it.
 
Why not play it like red stakes where you are still penalized but get the distance?

I think everything should be a lateral hazard.
 
I think it should be changed to the same penalty as a lateral hazard. Not sure that replacing white stakes with red stakes would be the way to go though because by rule, you can play out of a red staked hazard. I could see some yo-yo taking huge divots in someones backyard if it were red staked as a lateral hazard.
 
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