If you thought your two quadruple bogeys on the back nine were grounds for an extra beer at the 19th hole, image what Lee Ann Walker might have ordered after posting a 127 at the 2019 Senior LPGA Championship. True story.
It had nothing to do with her playing ability; Walker was assessed 42 penalty strokes in the opening round of that tournament (and 16 more for the next day’s round) for violating Rule 10.2b (getting alignment help from her caddie with line of play).
She was unaware that the rule that formerly permitted a caddie to stand behind a player while putting for the purposes of alignment had changed earlier that year, the practice now prohibited.
[Image: Shakeel Sha]
Talk about a lesson well learned. While you should ask your caddie to step away before you make a stroke, you might wonder if it’s a penalty for using other things to help get you aimed properly. For example, could you put down an alignment rod to get lined up to your target? Perhaps not while you swing, but could something be set down and then removed before it’s time to hit?
The answer is no, and it doesn’t matter when the object is removed. Whether done by a caddie, someone in your group or yourself, you’re not allowed to set an object down to either help with aiming or in making a stroke. It’s worth stating again that you can’t do it even if you remove the object before hitting. The moment you set something down for aiming purposes, it’s a two-stroke penalty or loss of hole in match play.
Getting back to the situation in the headline of this article – wondering about a player who sets his or her clubface down in alignment with the target and then walks around it to get ready to hit – it’s understandable if you think that might fall into the category of a rules violation.
Fortunately for that golfer, there is no penalty for setting a clubhead down behind the ball and then taking a stance. This was clarified effective January 1, 2025 (Rule 10.2b(3)/1) and is differentiated from setting an object down for the purpose of aiming or taking a stance.
According to the Rules of Golf, “setting an object down” doesn’t mean resting the clubhead on the ground so long as you’re still holding it.
Setting an object down means that the object is in contact with the ground and the player is not touching the object. So if you were going to lay another club down next to your ball (or anything for that matter) to help you get aligned as you are about to hit, you would be assessed the general penalty (two strokes or loss of hole in matchplay).
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