Golf Rules Q&A

Let's review some Rules incidents involving wind. Not knowing the correct procedures in the below situations could cause more harm in a round than not mastering the trajectory of your irons.

Q1. A player plays his approach shot, and the ball comes to rest on the front edge of the green. While the player is walking towards the green, a gust of wind blows the ball five yards off the green, towards the player. What is the ruling?

A1. The player must play the ball from its new position. As wind is not an outside agency, no Rule requires or allows the player to replace the ball on the spot where it first came to rest. The player must accept the result, good or bad. For example, if the wind had blown the ball into the hole, the player is considered to have holed out with his approach shot.

Q2. May a player use an anemometer (wind meter) to gauge the wind's direction and strength?

A2. No, as Rule 14-3 prohibits a player from using an artificial device to gauge conditions that might affect his play.

Q3. A player about to play from an elevated tee is afraid that his ball might be blown off the tee during his swing. He places his golf bag to shield the ball from the wind and plays. Is such an act permissible?

A3. No. The player is in breach of Rule 1-2.

Q4. Before putting, a player takes his stance and grounds his club. He backs away, and, fifteen second later but before the player has stepped back to the ball, a gust of wind moves the ball one inch. What is the ruling?

A4. The player incurs one penalty stroke and must replace the ball. As the ball moved after the player had addressed it, he is considered to have caused the ball to move (Rule 18-2b). Note: This ruling may be changed for 2012.

Q5. Before putting, a player takes his stance and grounds his club. He backs way and marks the position of and lifts his ball. Twenty seconds later, he replaces the ball. Before he addresses the ball again, a gust of wind moves the ball. What is the ruling?

A5. There is no penalty, and the ball is played from its new position. By lifting the ball, the player has "unaddressed" it and is therefore not considered to have caused it to move. Note: This point may become less significant in 2012.

Q6. On a windy day, a player putts, and a leaf blown by the wind strikes and deflects his ball in motion. What is the ruling?

A6. The player is required to cancel and replay the stroke, without penalty. While the detached leaf is a loose impediment, it is also a moving outside agency that deflected the player's putt, and Rule 19-1b applies. If the moving leaf had deflected a ball played from anywhere other than the putting green (e.g., with a chip shot), the player would have had to play the ball from where it came to rest.