Can you scratch the green to mark your ball before lifting it?
We often enjoy the moment when we walk onto the green and can mark the location of our golf ball, lift it and clean it, prior to our first putt.
Have you ever arrived at the first green and forgotten to grab your favourite ball marker? What are you permitted to do without a ball marker? Have you ever scratched the surface of the green with a tee to mark the spot of your ball? Or done it for someone else?
Whenever you are permitted to lift your ball in play and required to replace it on exactly the same spot (most commonly on the putting green), you must mark the spot first. You can do this with either a ball marker or by holding a club on the ground right next to the ball. This last option becomes impractical if you are waiting around for others to putt.
In most cases, a ball marker is the preferred choice. A ball marker can be an artificial object, such as a tee, a coin, an item designed for the purpose of marking, or another small piece of equipment. It’s important to note that it must be an artificial object and cannot be something natural, like a twig or leaf.
Since the marker must be artificial, attempting to mark the location of your ball by scratching the green’s surface and then lifting your ball is a breach that will result in a one-stroke penalty under Rule 14.1a.
This simple procedure can become a bit more complex when you’re marking someone else’s ball, whether with or without their authorisation.
Player A (let’s call him Alan) is playing from a greenside bunker and his ball comes to rest on the putting green. Alan’s ball is now interfering with the putt of Player B (let’s call her Sue), as Alan is raking the bunker.
Sue has two options in this situation: she can choose to wait for Alan to finish raking and then proceed to mark his own ball on the green, or Sue can take the initiative and mark Alan’s ball for him. Given the significant emphasis on maintaining a good pace of play at most golf clubs, waiting for Alan to finish would not be the preferred course of action.
It’s important to note that any conversation between Alan and Sue regarding the marking of the interfering ball is relevant. If there is no prior conversation or authorisation regarding the handling of the interfering ball, Sue has the option to move Alan’s ball without marking it, as she is considered an outside influence and not acting under Alan’s authority. While it’s considered courteous and more accurate to mark the ball’s spot before moving it, Sue will not incur a penalty for failing to do so.
Now, let’s imagine that Alan calls out to Sue, saying, “Hey Sue, do you mind marking my ball, please?” In this case, if Sue breaches any rule related to marking Alan’s ball, Alan will be subject to the penalty, as Sue is acting on Alan’s behalf and with his authorisation. This underscores the importance of clear communication, as well as following correct procedure when marking a ball.
Please use a ball marker/artificial object whenever you are lifting a ball that needs to be replaced.
Stuart McPhee is a rules official for the PGA Tour of Australasia and co-host of the No.1 podcast in the world dedicated solely to discussing the Rules of Golf: The Golf Rules Questions Podcast.
Getty images: Eoin Noonan
