Rules Review
Rules of Golf Review: It was only a tap-in, but my opponent raked his putt into the hole. Is that legal?
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Before we get into the rule that explains what constitues a putting stroke and what doesn't, let's watch this perfectly legal way to six-putt. This has happened many times in pro golf, but this effort by Thomas Detry at the Cognizant Classic in March pretty much sums up how golf can devour your soul.
OK, that wasn't a good look for Detry, but everything he did there was OK according to the Rules of Golf. When reviewing the Definition of a stroke (the forward movement of the club made to strike the ball) and applying it to Rule 10.1 (making a stroke), Detry complied with the edict to "fairly strike at the ball with any part of the head of the club such that there is only momentary contact between the club and the ball and must not push, scrape or scoop the ball."
That brings us back to the tap-in situation addressed in the headline. Sure, short putts are almost never missed, but the casual drag of the putterhead into the ball runs counter to the part of Rule 10.1 that says there should only be "momentary contact between the club and the ball."
Dragging the ball into the cup is two-stroke penalty or loss of hole in match play.
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You might wonder about holing a putt "pool cue" style. After all, the butt end of the club smashing into the ball does seem to meet the "momentary contact" part of Rule 10.1. However, clarification 10.1a/1 walks you through some examples of things that are not considered a legal stroke. And hitting a ball like you're holding a pool cue is considered a push, and is prohibited.
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Here are the other examples:
A player moves the club along the surface of the ground pulling it toward them. Moving the ball like this is a scrape.
A player slides a club beneath and very close to the ball. The player then lifts and moves the ball by use of a forward and upward motion. Moving the ball like this is a scoop.
None of these actions, however, cover the what happens when you putt a ball that's still in motion. Remember Phil Mickelson at the 2018 U.S. Open? He wasn't thrilled with how fast the greens were at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in New York and got hit with a two-stroke penalty for violating Rule 11.2b (player deliberately hits any ball in motion).