Rules of Golf Review: He says it was a practice swing that nicked the ball. I think he was trying to hit it. Re-tee without penalty?

In a performance worthy of a Screen Actors Guild card, a golfer who tries to hit the ball but misses it entirely might get away without adding a stroke to his or her card by simply pretending it was a "practice swing." Keen-eyed opponents and playing partners can usually tell the difference between an intentional swing and a warm-up pass, but sometimes the guilty player gets away with it. You've probably had a few instances in your group that fall into this not-entirely-sure-of-what-just-happened category.

What happens when you are sure a "stroke" as defined by the Rules of Golf was made but the golfer insists it was a practice swing? Let's break down the scenario in the headline:

You're playing with someone who tees a ball up, makes a few practice swings and then appears to settle in for the real thing. That golfer then flails at the ball and barely touches it, but makes enough contact that it falls off the tee. You're sure it was an actual stroke—defined as the forward movement of the club made to strike the ball—and the player should now take his second stroke on the ground where the ball came to rest.

The player, however, insists it was yet another practice stroke and he or she wants to invoke Rule 6.2b(5). That rule says, "If a teed ball falls off the tee or is knocked off the tee by the player before the player has made a stroke at it, it may be re-teed anywhere in the teeing area without penalty." In fact, he or she might recall this happening to Zach Johnson at the 2019 Masters and use that as part of the excuse.

This is clearly an uncomfortable situation. You've played golf long enough to tell the difference between a stroke and a practice swing. It's like when Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart said he wasn't going to attempt to define obscenity, but "I know it when I see it."

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Unfortunately, Rule 1.2a comes into play in this situation. If the player is adamant that it was a practice stroke and there's no definitive evidence to prove otherwise, then you have to take his or her word for it. If it were a tournament and you made a compelling case that his or her actions were indeed dishonest, the Committee could disqualify the golfer for "acting contrary to the spirit of the game." But it's doubtful there's anything you can do about it during a Saturday-morning round.

In this case, the player re-tees without penalty. However, if that same player made a practice stroke when the ball was in play (after a stroke made in the teeing area) and accidentally hit the ball, it's a one-stroke penalty and the ball must be replaced.

Hopefully you pick your golf partners more selectively in the future.

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