Written By: Nick Heyrman
*Editor's Note - this article was updated to reflect the 2019 Rules of Golf changes
With the NCCGA season upon us, it is a great time to test your knowledge of the rules of golf. We've all seen many of these rules come up during a round, either to you personally or to a playing partner. And while we may all think we know the right answers, do you really?
I’ve devised a 10 question golf rules quiz to assess your knowledge of some common situations that may occur on the course. Test your knowledge and see who can do the best from your club team. Let us know how you score by sending me a tweet @NCCGA on Twitter!
Assume individual stroke play is the format for each question.
Q1) How many relief options do you have for a red penalty area (red stakes and lines)?
*Hint: the updated 2019 Rules of Golf affects the answer to this question
- 3
- 5
- 4
- 2
Q2) True or False: You are entitled to free relief from a boundary fence that marks the out-of-bounds line.
- True
- False
Q3) True or False: If you knock your ball off of the tee without the intent to make a stroke at the ball, you are allowed to replace the ball on the tee.
- True
- False
Q4) What is the penalty for hitting your partner’s golf bag with your ball?
*Hint: the updated 2019 Rules of Golf affects the answer to this question
- 1 stroke and play the ball from where it ends up
- 2 strokes and play the ball from where it ends up
- No penalty, play the ball from where it ends up
- No penalty, replay shot
Q5) True or False: One of your relief options from a yellow penalty area (yellow stakes and lines) is dropping a ball within two club-lengths of where your ball last crossed the margin of the penalty area.
- True
- False
Q6) What is the penalty for a player if he accidentally moves his ball while probing the water for it in a water hazard?
*Hint: the updated 2019 Rules of Golf affects the answer to this question
- 1 stroke
- 2 strokes
- No penalty, replace the ball
Q7) True or False: You must re-drop the ball if it rolls outside of the relief area when taking relief from a cart path.
*Hint: the updated 2019 Rules of Golf affects the answer to this question
- True
- False
Q8) True or False: Any loose impediment may be removed without penalty except for when it and the ball lie in or touch the same hazard.
*Hint: the updated 2019 Rules of Golf affects the answer to this question
- True
- False
Q9) True or False: If a player holes out with a wrong ball, he still has the opportunity to correct his mistake without being disqualified.
- True
- False
Q10) True or False: If a player’s ball rests against a flagstick on the lip of the cup and some of the ball remains above the cup, the player is deemed to have holed out.
*Hint: the updated 2019 Rules of Golf affects the answer to this question
- True
- False
(NO PEEKING BELOW THIS LINE UNTIL FINISHED)
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Answers
1: 4 - See Rule 17-2 for the four relief options a player is entitled to when taking relief from a lateral water hazard.
2: False (See the definition of Out of Bounds. Objects defining out of bounds, such as walls, fences, stakes and railings are not obstructions and are deemed to be fixed. Thus, the player is not entitled to relief from an obstruction under Rule 18)
3: True (See Rule 9-4. If a ball, when not in play, falls off a tee or is knocked off a tee by the player in addressing it, it may be re-teed, without penalty. However, if a stroke is made at the ball in these circumstances, whether the ball is moving or not, the stroke counts, but there is not penalty.)
4: This used to be a penalty but accidental contact is no longer a penalty (See rules 11.1). Play the ball where it lies.
5: False (See Rule 17. This option is not one of the relief options that players are entitled to when taking relief from a yellow penalty area.)
6: No penalty (See Rule 7.4. This is one of the exceptions to the normal penalty of one stroke for a player moving his ball when it is in play as it falls under Rule 12-1 related to a player moving his ball accidentally during the process of searching for it.)
7: True (Rule 14.3 showcases that a ball must end of in the designated relief area)
8: False - the new rules of golf allow for loose impediments to be removed (See Rule 15.1)
9: True (See Rule 14.7. Once a player strikes a wrong ball, he may correct his mistake, incurring a penalty of two strokes, before he tees off on the next hole. After he tees off on the next hole, the player is disqualified.)
10: True (See Rule 13.2. If your ball comes to rest against the flagstick left in the hole, and any part of your ball is in the hole below the surface of the putting green, your ball is treated as holed.
