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USGA Rule Adherence - Yes or No?

deuce

deuce

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So another thread got me thinking about golf, and how I play it. I haven't been a part of the golf scene for long ... I think this is my fifth year or so "playing" but when it started out, I did my best to adhere to all of the rules. Then, a couple of years ago, the USGA stated that, despite this being an honorable game, people who played alone could no longer post their scores. For me, that was the proverbial straw that broke the camels back, and from that point forward I decided that I couldn't be bothered worrying about each and every rule.

Now, if I hook a drive out of bounds, I'm not re-teeing, I'm dropping somewhere along the path of the ball and hitting four from that spot. If I'm in the fairway and in a divot, I'm moving it out. I don't penalize myself for moving a ball away from a root, and I'll carry (and *gasp* maybe even play) a wedge with illegal grooves. And when I play alone, I still record my scores.

I don't play tournaments - I'm nowhere good enough - but honestly, even if people consider my handicap all out of whack because of my "rule violations", I don't think this would put me at an advantage in a tournament ... if anything, it would be the exact opposite.

At any rate, have you given up on the USGA yet, and if so what was the final straw for you?
 
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USGA? Hmmmm..... (taps chin) Never heard of them. That a division 3 college team?
 
I couldn't care less what the USGA says as I don't live in the US so don't have to adhere to their rules :alien:

However, here in the UK, it isn't possible to submit a card for handicap purposes when playing as a single as you have to have someone mark and sign your card for you

As I play in matches for our club, I don't roll balls out of divots or away from roots etc as I couldn't do that in a match without taking a penalty drop, so whenever I am out on the course for a competition, match or even practice, I will play every ball as it lies, hit a provisional ball if I suspect the ball is OB or lost and take the penalty accordingly

If someone else wants to bend the rules then that is up to them, I couldn't care less what anyone else does unless it is an official competition or match, at which point I will pull you up about it and even refuse to sign the card at the end of the round if you persist in taking liberties
 
I think the USGA did some good things with the new rules changes for next year, but there's still a lot to do in order to get me happy. I play "common sense" rules and if they align with the USGA, great. If not, the only person I am hurting is myself when it gets time to play strictly by the rules, which will be...um...not in the foreseeable future.
 
I play by the rules - it makes sense for me because I play in some matches and tournaments that require it. I also think it's helped my game hold up under pressure, and when I play in different situations (i.e. new courses, new groups, different events, etc.). Doesn't matter to me what other people do.

I think the USGA has their work cut out for them, trying to grow the game while also managing the expectations of newcomers, modern players, and traditionalists. They get some things right, and some things wrong. I'm not ready to write them off entirely.
 
I was a member of the USGA for about 30 years until a couple years ago when they completely botched the handling of the Lexi and DJ decisions. I also thought their anchoring ban was a joke. The allowed it for 50 years and then they decided to ban?????

That being said, I grew up playing golf by USGA rules and I still play by those rules other than posting a few rounds each year where I played solo.
 
I strictly adhere to the vast majority of the rules (penalties, playing as lies off fairways / in bunkers, etc.). I do record all scores, good or bad, whether playing alone or with others. In addition, due to playing a county run public golf course with a tight budget that typically only mows twice a week, I will sometimes improve my lie in the fairway if it is unfair and often worse than if I were in the rough. All tournaments played at my home course allow for 6 inches of improvement in your own fairway as the pro recognizes that the course is far from immaculately manicured. When playing at well conditioned courses, I play everything in the fairway as it lies.

I know some on here will have a problem with these two things but so be it. I have never been accused of sandbagging and am playing my non-tournament rounds in tournament conditions.
 
None of my leagues adhere to certain USGA rules, and even the club championships I’ve played in at a few different courses allowed players to not follow some rules (in-course OB treated as a hazard, lost balls not being penalized if everyone agreed where the ball “should” be due to wet conditions, etc). Occasionally when I’m practicing by myself I’ll play 9 or 18 holes completely by the rules but that doesn’t happen too often since it feels like an inefficient use of my time compared to playing multiple balls and practicing certain shots that I feel need improvement.
 
TheDoctor said:
I couldn't care less what the USGA says as I don't live in the US so don't have to adhere to their rules :alien:

However, here in the UK, it isn't possible to submit a card for handicap purposes when playing as a single as you have to have someone mark and sign your card for you

As I play in matches for our club, I don't roll balls out of divots or away from roots etc as I couldn't do that in a match without taking a penalty drop, so whenever I am out on the course for a competition, match or even practice, I will play every ball as it lies, hit a provisional ball if I suspect the ball is OB or lost and take the penalty accordingly

If someone else wants to bend the rules then that is up to them, I couldn't care less what anyone else does unless it is an official competition or match, at which point I will pull you up about it and even refuse to sign the card at the end of the round if you persist in taking liberties
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And it's Draconian rules like this that made the US fight for it's freedom and God-given right to fluff lies.
 
oh boy....
 
ShortStickShaman said:
It's like Whack-a-Mole!!
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In my defense, I hadn't ventured into the fluff thread until after I posted this.

Despite that, the OP is pretty straightforward. I think people should play golf the way they want to. If you want to follow all the rules, have at it. If you want to bend them, have at it. I don't think any of us who bend rules have any expectation that we'd be able to - or should - do such in an official, sanctioned event. Outside of that, I think everyone should play in a way that makes them happy. I'm mostly interested in, if you decided to tell the USGA to take a hike, what finally did it for you?
 
ShortStickShaman said:
And it's Draconian rules like this that made the US fight for it's freedom and God-given right to fluff lies.
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And maybe if the US Ryder Cup team had done all of that they might not have lost soooo badly :alien:

Like I said, if it isn't an official match or competition then do whatever you want, I don't care, but when you have to play by the rules then you better do it
 
I contend that many people who go out and play a round of golf don't even know all the rules of golf. But at the same time I also believe that they don't play the game competitively either. It's not that they violate the rules purposely, but are just ignorant of many of the rules. I know that I don't know them all.
 
TheDoctor said:
And maybe if the US Ryder Cup team had done all of that they might not have lost soooo badly :alien:

Like I said, if it isn't an official match or competition then do whatever you want, I don't care, but when you have to play by the rules then you better do it
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LOL. Salt, meet wound.

As an unabashed rule breaker, I more than likely would not enter a tourney. Not necessarily because of my rule breaking, but more of my desire to not humiliate myself. That said, if I were in some kind of actual bona-fide competition, I'm pretty sure I would try to stick more to the rules. I really have no issue with the RoG, but all they would do for me is add a few dozen stokes to the round.
 
deuce said:
In my defense, I hadn't ventured into the fluff thread until after I posted this.

Despite that, the OP is pretty straightforward. I think people should play golf the way they want to. If you want to follow all the rules, have at it. If you want to bend them, have at it. I don't think any of us who bend rules have any expectation that we'd be able to - or should - do such in an official, sanctioned event. Outside of that, I think everyone should play in a way that makes them happy. I'm mostly interested in, if you decided to tell the USGA to take a hike, what finally did it for you?
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Since I'm a very casual player, I've never given the USGA much thought, unless it's to bash them about decisions I felt were idiotic.
 
ShortStickShaman said:
LOL. Salt, meet wound.

As an unabashed rule breaker, I more than likely would not enter a tourney. Not necessarily because of my rule breaking, but more of my desire to not humiliate myself. That said, if I were in some kind of actual bona-fide competition, I'm pretty sure I would try to stick more to the rules. I really have no issue with the RoG, but all they would do for me is add a few dozen stokes to the round.
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Haha, bit of a RC cheap shot but sometimes these things just have to be done :D

I certainly don't knock you for breaking the rules, from what I read in the 'Breaking 100' thread you all have plenty of fun out there on the course and that is what it is all about, and in a non-competitive setting at times I enjoy just knocking the ball around without worrying about score etc and trying various shots that I wouldn't necessarily attempt in competition unless I was pretty sure I could pull it off

The fact that I still play most of my practice under the RoG is due to the fact that I play matches for our club, so for me personally I find it better to practice from the bad lies as, if I can play those, in theory playing from a good lie becomes so much easier
 
TheDoctor said:
Haha, bit of a RC cheap shot but sometimes these things just have to be done :D

I certainly don't knock you for breaking the rules, from what I read in the 'Breaking 100' thread you all have plenty of fun out there on the course and that is what it is all about, and in a non-competitive setting at times I enjoy just knocking the ball around without worrying about score etc and trying various shots that I wouldn't necessarily attempt in competition unless I was pretty sure I could pull it off

The fact that I still play most of my practice under the RoG is due to the fact that I play matches for our club, so for me personally I find it better to practice from the bad lies as, if I can play those, in theory playing from a good lie becomes so much easier
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We do have a good time in the B100 thread, that's for sure! I definitely like you popping in from time to time too!

I think the rules are unnecessarily complicated and to a beginner, overwhelming. The fact that the rulebook is an actual book is very offputting. If you burp when you tee off, there's nothing you can do, but if you *fart* that's an automatic do-over with no penalty. If you sneeze at any point in your backswing, you can hit again, but if you sneeze while the club is moving forward, you'll have to play it as it lies... Exaggerated of course for humor, but some of the rules are really reactionary, as if "oh crap this came up in a tournament, now we have to write a rule about it!"

Just seems like it should be simplified (except the fart rule - that's important). I get there should be tournament rules, but most golf is like a pickup game of basketball - everyone's the umpire, group decision is made, and play on.
 
there are a few i'm loose about. if i get into a match situation, it only hurts me if my handicap is artificially low as a result.

- re-playing ob and lost balls. nope, not gonna do it. i'm dropping and taking two strokes.

- yellow stakes. no idea what to do, so i'll just play it like a red stake.

- red stakes. try my best to approximate where it entered, and take a drop of some kind. i don't know all the rules around taking drops, so i'm sure i'm not doing it right.

- cart path. again, i'm sure i'm doing the drop wrong, but it's good enough for me.

- putting with the flag stick in. i don't do it often, but i won't say i've never done it. i certainly don't do it for an advantage, i'm just lazy. i guess this is becoming acceptable for non-tournament scores soon?

- gimmes. i take them. a lot. probably too generously at times. again, it only hurts me in the long run.

yep, i'm a cheater.
 
c.a.eleric said:
there are a few i'm loose about. if i get into a match situation, it only hurts me if my handicap is artificially low as a result.

- re-playing ob and lost balls. nope, not gonna do it. i'm dropping and taking two strokes.

- yellow stakes. no idea what to do, so i'll just play it like a red stake.

- red stakes. try my best to approximate where it entered, and take a drop of some kind. i don't know all the rules around taking drops, so i'm sure i'm not doing it right.

- cart path. again, i'm sure i'm doing the drop wrong, but it's good enough for me.

- putting with the flag stick in. i don't do it often, but i won't say i've never done it. i certainly don't do it for an advantage, i'm just lazy. i guess this is becoming acceptable for non-tournament scores soon?

- gimmes. i take them. a lot. probably too generously at times. again, it only hurts me in the long run.

yep, i'm a cheater.
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I like the cut of your jib, mister.
 
tahoebum said:
I was a member of the USGA for about 30 years until a couple years ago when they completely botched the handling of the Lexi and DJ decisions. I also thought their anchoring ban was a joke. The allowed it for 50 years and then they decided to ban?????

That being said, I grew up playing golf by USGA rules and I still play by those rules other than posting a few rounds each year where I played solo.
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The USGA had no involvement in DJ's Ruling at the 2010 PGA Championship (PGA Officials) or Lexi's Ruling at the 2017 ANA Championship (LPGA Officials).
USGA Officials are present and make Rulings only at USGA tournament events (US Open, US Amateur etc...)
 
I lost faith in the USGA when they came up with the groove rule. It affected the professionals not one iota, but just hurt the amateur who has trouble spinning the ball as is.

Their "also you can't record a score if you play solo" rule. As if the people you are playing golf with are keeping track of your score, watch how you take a drop, etc.

Not to mention rules controversies, e.g., Lexi Thompson.

For an organization that purports to growing the game, it seems anything but.
 
ps: now they are looking at dialing back the ball. If the USGA is concerned how far the pros are hitting the ball, no need to make courses longer, or dial back the ball...simply narrow the fairways and make the rough more penal.

In addition, most amateurs cannot afford to lose any distance. Even if there is bifurcation, what about the aspiring amateur? What ball does he play at an AJGA event, state tournaments, college golf team?

It's a solution in search of a problem.
 
I don't know the rules well enough to worry about it. Playing golf for me is about being outside and hanging out with friends. I doubt i will ever enter any type of tournament as i am not anywhere near good enough. Play how you would like to play and enjoy it.
 
For the people who choose not to play by the Rules of Golf, my question is where is the line drawn (when making up your own Rules)?
For example:
mulligans o.k. ? if so only on the first hole or may mulligans be taken anywhere ?
gimmee putts o.k. from any distance or only if the putt is within a foot,2 feet? 3 feet ? 5 feet ?, 10 feet?
bumping or rolling the ball o.k anywhere or just in the fairway ?
is just bumping/rolling allowed or is lifting the ball and cleaning it o.k.as well?
do you move the ball in a bunker if you don't like the lie, such as within a footprint or rake mark, or do you not improve bunker lies ?
 
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