colorado-golf-companies

	Rules of Golf
	Golf Myths Regarding the Flagstick

By Kim Nissen
CWGA Director of Rules & Competitions

You take a sigh of relief as you successfully reach the green of the hardest hole on the golf course, and you accomplish this feat without incurring any penalties. However, there is still plenty of trouble to get yourself into while on the green if you do not have a solid understanding of the Rules of Golf. In fact, there is an entire rule dealing with the putting green (Rule 16) and yet another dealing with the flagstick (Rule 17). Because there are many urban golf legends regarding the flagstick that confuse most golfers, we will take a closer look at Rule 17, The Flagstick.
Golf Myth 1: The only place a player can have the flagstick attended is when their ball is on the putting green.

The Rule: Rule 17-1 states that prior to making a stroke from anywhere on the course, a player may have the flagstick attended. They can also have the flagstick removed or held up to indicate the position of the hole. The key to this rule is that the fellow competitor or opponent attends the flagstick before a stroke is made at the ball.

Golf Myth 2: A removed flagstick that has been placed on the putting green cannot be moved if a ball is about to hit it, because the person who moves the flagstick will be penalized.

The Rule: In the 2008-2009 Rules of Golf, Rule 24 (Obstructions) now states that equipment of any player or a removed flagstick may be moved without penalty when a ball is in motion. Two Decisions on the Rules of Golf, 17-1/6 and 17-1/7, further clarify this point.

Golf Myth 3: If a player’s ball strikes the flagstick when it is being attended or a ball strikes the person attending the flagstick or anything carried by the flagstick attendant, the person attending the flagstick receives a two-stroke penalty for their carelessness.

The Rule: If a player’s ball strikes the flagstick, the attendee or anything carried or worn by the person attending the flagstick, the player who played the stroke receives a two-stroke penalty and the ball is played as it lies (stroke play). The player is responsible for ensuring their ball does not strike the flagstick, the person attending the flagstick or anything carried or worn by the attendee. Being able to trust that the person attending the flagstick will do their job effectively is key to avoiding a penalty.

Golf Myth 4: A player must ask someone to attend the flagstick for the rules to consider that the fellow competitor or opponent is authorized to do so.

The Rule: If a fellow competitor or opponent stands within arm’s reach of the flagstick in the hole, the player clearly sees the fellow competitor or opponent next to the flagstick and without objection the player makes a stroke, then the player has deemed to have authorized the fellow competitor or opponent to attend the flagstick. The key to this rule is that the player had knowledge that someone was standing near the hole prior to making a stroke.

Even on a 30-yard putting green surface, knowing the rules can help you improve your game. Understanding the truth behind these golf myths can save you from receiving penalty strokes, therefore, keeping your score as low as possible. Who knew that knowing the rules could help you improve your score just as much as all those practice putts you made in your living room over the winter?

More information is available on the USGA’s website, www.usga.org. The 2008-2009 Rules of Golf book or Decisions on the Rules of Golf can be purchased by contacting the CWGA at 303-366-7888, 800-392-2942 or cwga@cogolf.org.