I'm playing a match in the club championship, 7:30 tee off so we run into the mowers on the 4th hole.
Playing summer rules I hit my ball into the ruff, I locate my ball, identify it's mine and proceed to hit a good shot, 50 yards short of the green…I'm laying two on a par 5, in the fairway…a 50 yard pitch away.
When I get to my sphere I noticed the mower had shaved off the top layer of my ball, it was sitting in the ruff with the opposite end up and I had no idea the ball had been mowed over and cut.
What happens in match play, what happens in stroke play?
Because we were playing match play, my opponent allowed me to replace the ball with no penalty where I was lying two, but I hit an illegal ball to get to that spot???
A ball is unfit for play if it is visibly cut, cracked or out of shape. A ball is not unfit for play solely because mud or other materials adhere to it, its surface is scratched or scraped or its paint is damaged or discoloured.
If a player has reason to believe his ball has become unfit for play during play of the hole being played, he may lift the ball, without penalty, to determine whether it is unfit.
Before lifting the ball, the player must announce his intention to his
opponent in match play or his
marker or a
fellow-competitor in stroke play and mark the position of the ball. He may then lift and examine it, provided that he gives his
opponent,
marker or
fellow-competitor an opportunity to examine the ball and observe the lifting and replacement. The ball must not be cleaned when lifted under Rule 5-3.
If the player fails to comply with all or any part of this procedure, or if he lifts the ball without having reason to believe that it has become unfit for play during play of the hole being played, he incurs a penalty of one stroke.
If it is determined that the ball has become unfit for play during play of the hole being played, the player may
substitute another ball, placing it on the spot where the original ball lay. Otherwise, the original ball must be replaced. If a player
substitutes a ball when not permitted and makes a
stroke at the incorrectly
substituted ball, he incurs the general penalty for a breach of Rule 5-3, but there is no additional penalty under this Rule or
Rule 15-2.
If a ball breaks into pieces as a result of a
stroke, the
stroke is cancelled and the player must play a ball, without penalty, as nearly as possible at the spot from which the original ball was played (see
Rule 20-5).
*PENALTY FOR BREACH OF RULE 5-3:
Match play – Loss of hole; Stroke play – Two strokes.
*If a player incurs the general penalty for a breach of Rule 5-3, there is no additional penalty under this Rule.
Note 1: If the
opponent,
marker or
fellow-competitor wishes to dispute a claim of unfitness, he must do so before the player plays another ball.
Note 2: If the original lie of a ball to be placed or replaced has been altered, see
Rule 20-3b.
(Cleaning ball lifted from putting green or under any other Rule – see
Rule 21)
