Golf By David McPherson Ruminating on the Rules Flag in or out and other 2019 changes Rule: (noun) According to the Oxford Canadian Dictionary, a rule is a principle to which an action, procedure, etc. conforms or is required to conform. No other sport has as many rules as golf. While there are only 34 official rules, that does not include all of the sub rules, sub sub rules, exceptions to the sub rules, local course rules, etc. By the time you add these up, the actual number of rules are in the hundreds. The reality is that there are so many rules that most players (pros included) don’t even know – or at least understand – all of the guidelines to this grand old game. And that’s okay. If you are in doubt about a rule, as a group, just decide what rule to play during your round. At the end of the day, at your level, it should be about enjoying the game with friends and keeping everyone accountable without making them feel miserable because of all of the rule infractions that they made because of a rule which they did not even know existed. The good news is that as of January 1, 2019, thanks to the new modernized rules of golf created by the USGA and the R&A, in consultation withmany of the other governing bodies in other countries around the world, the rules are now down by 10 – down to 24. This is the result of years of consultations with the end goal of trying to make the game more attractive and accessible to newcomers. For the first time, a new Player’s Edition of the Rules of Golf is being introduced to promote a shorter, more user-friendly version of the game’s guidelines. The new, modernized Rules of Golf are finalized and were recently released by the USGA and R&A. They go into effect at the beginning of 2019, whenmost of you are teeing it up somewhere south of the border, enjoying the snowbird lifestyle. Here’s a primer on some of the major changes. First, nothing irks me more – or turns me off of the game − when enjoying a round of golf than slow play. I still smile every time I think of an early-morning round with one of my best friends when we were teenagers and me complaining to him about the ‘turtle family’ playing in front of us. There are many reasons why a round of golf might take more than five hours, but the reality is that none of them are acceptable. If you keep pace with the group ahead of you and don’t line every putt up from every angle on the green, and do all of the other little things, saving a minute here or there, by the end of 18 holes you will have shaved time off of your round and everyone’s experience is enhanced. I applaud the USGA and R&A – the two most influential governing bodies of golf – for taking steps to change several rules with the main goal of trying to improve pace of play. On the surface, the one rule that is thought to speed up play might actually slow things down. I’m talking about the “Flag Rule” Rule 13.2a(2). Picture this. Your foursome arrives at the green. Bob’s ball is on the putting surface, but 40 feet from the hole. He says to please pull the pin out. His playing partner Timobliges and walks up and takes out the flag. Then it’s Johnny’s turn to putt; he says that he wants the flag back in. Finally, it’s Tim’s turn and he says, ‘I can’t decide! Just keep it half in and half out!” See where I’m going with this? It starts to feel like the famous Abbott and Costello, “Who’s on First?” skit, right? In the past, according to rule Under Rule 13.2a(2): a player incurred a two-stroke penalty if a ball putted from the green hit the flagstick before going into the hole. There is constant debate on whether leaving the flag in hinders 44 | www.snowbirds.org
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