R&A Rules and Enquiries

Handicap Update April 2024

QA 1 – The player’s second shot lands in the greenside bunker. The player hits the ball out of the bunker and it comes to rest just short of the green. The player removes the sand that landed both on the green and off the green using a towel as it was on their line of play. What is the ruling in stroke play?

QA 2 – In stroke play, a player plays a left-handed stroke with the back of the head of a right-handed club. What is the ruling?

QA 3 – When, in a foursomes competition, a side is required to drop a ball, who may drop the ball?

QA 4 – When lifting a ball to see if it is cut or cracked, a player may clean the ball to the extent that is needed to see if cut or cracked.

QA 5 – In stroke play, a player has interference to their stance from an immovable obstruction. They determine their nearest point of complete relief using a five iron (as that is the club he would have used had the immovable obstruction not been there) and drop the ball within one club-length of that point, no nearer the hole. The ball settles down in the rough, so the player changes club and plays the ball out onto the fairway with a sand wedge. What is the ruling?

QA 6 – In match play, a player mistakenly picks up their ball-marker believing they have won a hole. What is the ruling?

QA 7 – In stroke play, a player’s ball comes to rest on a gravel surfaced road. They decide to play the ball as it lies, but before doing so they remove some gravel that was interfering with the stroke. What is the ruling?

QA 8 – In stroke play, player A asks player B what the distance is to the centre of the green and if there is a bunker behind the green. Player B answers both questions. What is the penalty?

QA 9 – The player hits their tee shot towards the course boundary. The player does not know if the ball is out of bounds or not so hits another ball, but they do not declare it as a provisional ball. What is the ruling?

QA 10 – A player is asked to lift their ball which lies just off the putting green as it is on their opponents’ line of play. The player is allowed to clean their ball without penalty.

True or False

QA 11 – Loose impediments may not be removed with the back of a golf club.

True or False

QA 12 – Before making a stroke in the bunker, you touch the sand with your club on your backswing. What is the ruling?

QA 13 – In stroke play, a player’s ball lies on the putting green. Before playing their next stroke, they tap down spike marks around the edge of the hole. What is the ruling?

QA 14 – When should you play ready golf?

QA 15 – A player drops a ball in the right way when taking relief, but the ball hits the ground first and then accidentally hits the player’s foot before coming to rest in the relief area. The player must drop the ball again.

QA 16 – In stroke play, instead of recording his usual signature on his score card, a player records his initials. What is the ruling?

QA 17 – In a stroke-play competition, players A, B and C were drawn by the Committee to play together starting at 9.00am. A and B were ready to play at the appointed time. Due to bad traffic, player C arrived at 9.02am after A and B had teed off but just in time to play in the correct order. What is the ruling?

QA 18 – A player’s ball is in bounds but they have interference from an immovable obstruction that is out of bounds. The player takes relief from the immovable obstruction and plays the ball. The player has proceeded correctly.