{"id":15546681,"date":"2024-08-06T07:07:59","date_gmt":"2024-08-06T11:07:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/golf.com\/?post_type=article&p=15546681"},"modified":"2024-08-06T09:30:58","modified_gmt":"2024-08-06T13:30:58","slug":"rules-guy-penalty-hit-ball-falls-off-tee-during-backswing","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/golf.com\/instruction\/rules\/rules-guy-penalty-hit-ball-falls-off-tee-during-backswing\/","title":{"rendered":"Rules Guy: Is it a penalty to hit a ball that falls off the tee during your backswing?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Rules of Golf are tricky! Thankfully, we\u2019ve got the guru. Our Rules Guy knows the book front to back<\/a>. Got a question? He\u2019s got all the answers.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

In a recent match-play competition, my opponent addressed his ball and started his swing.\u00a0Mid-swing, his ball rolled forward\u00a0off the tee, and he wound up hitting the moving ball. (The shot even found the fairway.) I know the rules penalize a player who strikes a ball in motion.\u00a0What\u2019s the story here? I\u2019m hoping you say two-stroke penalty or loss of hole.<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014 Erik Morrison, via email<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n\n

Not exactly the soul of generosity, Erik, but at least you\u2019re honest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The general principle in golf, as laid out in Rule 10.1(d), is that you must play the ball at rest and can\u2019t make a stroke at a moving ball, lest you indeed incur the general penalty of two strokes in stroke play and loss of hole in match play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However \u2014 and this is where your disappointment will kick in \u2014 there is a carve-out where, if the ball starts moving during one\u2019s backswing, and you hit the ball while it\u2019s moving, there is no penalty.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That\u2019s true as it relates specifically to a ball falling off a tee, per Rule 6.2(b)\/5 \u2014 yes, the rules contemplate almost everything \u2014 and everywhere else, per Rule 9.1(b). In these scenarios, the stroke counts and you play the next shot from where it lies.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\n \n Rules <\/a>\n <\/div>\n \n \n \"Golfer <\/a>\n <\/div>\n
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Rules Guy: What’s the penalty for accidentally playing from the wrong tees in match play?<\/a><\/blockquote>\n By:<\/span>\n \n \n Rules Guy <\/a>\n \n <\/span>\n <\/span>\n <\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

For more tee-related guidance from our guru, read on …<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The other day, I picked up a tee someone had left on the tee box and proceeded to use it. My friend told me this was a penalty, for using someone else\u2019s equipment. He said that if I wanted to use it, I needed to put it in my pocket first to claim it was mine. What\u2019s the ruling?<\/strong>\u00a0\u2014Wade Lindren, via email<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This sounds like a demented magician\u2019s trick: \u201cI put someone else\u2019s tee in my pocket \u2026 say the magic words \u2014 \u2018It\u2019s mine!\u2019<\/em> \u2014 take the tee out of my pocket \u2026 and \u2014 presto! It\u2019s legal!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Suffice it to say, your friend is a severely misguided stickler. The only restriction on sharing equipment relates to clubs. There is absolutely no issue with using someone else\u2019s tee, towel, rangefinder or ball.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(If the one-ball Local Rule, Model Local Rule G-4, is in effect, you can still borrow a ball, so long as it\u2019s the same make and model as the one you were using.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Accidentally using someone else\u2019s clubs is a general penalty of two strokes in stroke play or, in match play, adjusting the match with a one-hole deduction, with a maximum of two such penalties in either instance. The club must immediately be declared out of play once the player becomes aware of his or her error \u2014 otherwise, he or she is disqualified upon again using the club.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Need help unriddling the greens at your home course? Pick up a custom Green Book<\/a> from Golf Logix.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Got a question about the Rules? Ask the Rules Guy! Send your queries, confusions and comments to rulesguy@golf.com. We promise he won\u2019t throw the book at you.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What do you do if your ball falls off the tee in your backswing and you hit it anyway? Is that a penalty? Rules Guy has the answer.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":15546684,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":true,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"apple_news_api_created_at":"2024-08-06T11:08:03Z","apple_news_api_id":"c13b2156-580f-4281-b330-360068650db6","apple_news_api_modified_at":"2024-08-06T11:08:03Z","apple_news_api_revision":"AAAAAAAAAAD\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/\/w==","apple_news_api_share_url":"https:\/\/apple.news\/AwTshVlgPQoGzMDYAaGUNtg","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":"","apple_news_is_paid":"","apple_news_is_preview":"","apple_news_is_sponsored":"","apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":[],"apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false},"categories":[52],"tags":[61891],"class_list":["post-15546681","article","type-article","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-rules","tag-rulesguy"],"acf":{"art_author":[{"ID":14046396,"post_author":"235","post_date":"2018-02-10 16:33:43","post_date_gmt":"2018-02-10 16:33:43","post_content":"","post_title":"Rules Guy","post_excerpt":"","post_status":"publish","comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","post_password":"","post_name":"rules-guy-2","to_ping":"","pinged":"","post_modified":"2018-02-10 16:33:43","post_modified_gmt":"2018-02-10 16:33:43","post_content_filtered":"","post_parent":0,"guid":"https:\/\/www.golf.com\/?post_type=golf_person&p=14046396","menu_order":0,"post_type":"contributor","post_mime_type":"","comment_count":"0","filter":"raw"}],"art_source":"None","tee_time_button_status":false,"article_template":"standard","featured_image_caption":"What do the rules say about hitting a ball that falls off a tee mid-swing?","featured_image_credits":"Getty Images","wsum-gated-content":false,"wsotp_enable_one_time_payment":false,"ad_meta":false},"apple_news_notices":[],"yoast_head":"\nIs it a penalty to hit a ball that falls off the tee in your backswing?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"What do you do if your ball falls off the tee in your backswing and you hit it anyway? 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