The R&A and USGA have announced five updates to the rules of golf which will come into effect on 1st January 2023. They are:

·   Modifications to the rules for Players with Disabilities

·   Club Damaged during your round

·   Ball moved by natural forces

·   Back on the line relief from a penalty area or unplayable ball

·   Handicap on card in strokeplay

These updates have been introduced to “makes the rules easier to understand and apply; and also reduce penalties where possible.

Modifications to the rules for Players with Disabilities

These modifications are now part of the rules and are in effect for all competitions and all players, who fall under the categories covered in the new rule 25.

Club Damaged during your round

Change to Rule 4.1a(2)If your club is damaged during a round (except in cases of abuse) you may replace it or continue to use it.

You can replace a ball moved by natural  forces.

A new exception to rule 9.3. A ball at rest must be replaced if it moves to another area of the course or comes to rest out of bounds after being dropped, placed or replaced.

Example: Your ball was in the penalty area (pond) on the 13th on the Cathedral Course. You take a drop in the rough(general area) which slopes down towards the penalty area. Your ball comes to rest in the rough and you go to your bag to get a club to play your next shot. As you go back to the ball it rolls into the penalty area again.

You  receive the penalty for when you hit the ball into the penalty area but there is no added penalty when your ball rolls back into the penalty area having been at rest.

You may have seen on tv this happened to Rickie Fowler at the Waste Management Open, in Phoenix in February 2019, Rickie Fowler was leading by five in the final round when his chip on the 11th ran through the green, round a bunker, and into the water. 

The American took penalty area relief and dropped onto a steep bank – placing it after two initial efforts rolled into the water. As Fowler walked up to the green to survey his next shot, his ball crept down the bank and back into the water. He took penalty relief again and went on to record a triple bogey. It was a poor stroke of luck but the rules as they stood meant he had few other options at his disposal. The incident didn’t just raise hell on social media, it caught the attention of rules chiefs at the R&A and USGA. Hence the change to the rules.

Taking back-on-the-line relief is now simpler

This relief is used when taking relief from a penalty area or an unplayable ball. The procedure has been made a little easier in the 2023 Rule Book. Now, when you drop your ball on the line, the ball must come to rest within a club-length of where it is dropped. That club length can be in any direction (yes, that means forward!). 

No penalties for failing to put your handicap on the scorecard.

Update to Rule 3.3b

Handicap not required on card in strokeplay unless there is a local rule in place putting the responsibility back on the player

The update takes the responsibility from the player to the Handicap Committee to enter the handicap on the scorecard, this is because the majority of competition scores are usually entered via the computer.

The R & A do provide provision for the Committee to bring in a local rule to require the player's handicap to be on the card.

This new rule was discussed at the full ladies committee meeting on November 30th. The Committee voted unanimously that due to the number of Fun Competitions, that the section organises, (that cannot be entered on the computer), we will implement a local rule to put the responsibility back to the player. To avoid confusion the Committee decided that this local rule will be in place for all competitions.

The shortened rule will be as below:

Local Rule Making the Player Responsible for Handicap on Scorecard:

The player is responsible for showing their Handicap Index and Course Handicap on the scorecard.

Please note the penalty for infringement of this local rule is the general penalty in other words a 2 shot penalty.

This Local Rule was conveyed to the lady members in the December newsletter.

19/12/22