Rollout rocky for new golf rules

The rollout of new Rules of Golf by the U.S. Golf Association and Royal & Ancient Golf Association on Jan. 1 has been a work in progress on the PGA Tour.

The rules were worked on for six years by the USGA and R&A, along with the major golf organizations (PGA of America, European Tour, LPGA Tour and Augusta National Golf Club) before their unveiling.

In an effort to modernize and simplify them, the number of rules were reduced.

In some cases, rules were changed to simplify the game, speed up play, clarify a rule or eliminate cases where penalties had been called.

One new rule, involving caddies standing behind players before a shot, has already been slightly amended after a backlash.

“I love the rules for speeding up play for an amateur,” Kevin Kisner said. “I’m not 100 percent sure they all work on the professional level, but a lot of smart people have tried. It’s not like all of a sudden these guys blew the rules up. Caddie thing is probably going to be amended, and it needs to be. I don’t have a problem with any of them.”

One controversial rule is the new way to drop a ball, which has been criticized by Rickie Fowler, who said the look of it “is not doing any favors to our sport.”

In late February, Justin Thomas called the new rules “terrible,” which resulted in a Twitter battle between Thomas and the USGA, which accused him of cancelling meetings to discuss his criticism of the new rules. Thomas said he never cancelled a meeting, and the USGA admitted it was mistaken.

On March 4, PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan sent a memo to players that said “we are committed to playing under these rules as we analyze their effectiveness ... and it’s important to acknowledge that we are not at the finish line yet.”

On March 13 at The Players Championship, Monahan elaborated on the new and altered rules.

“When you go through a period where you haven’t had a lot of change, and then you roll out 50 changes, there are going to be some things that work really well and some things that might create debate,” Monahan said. “Lost in some of the discussion is all the things that are working really well, and the list is long, and I think it’s right that we’re 2½ months in and there’s some rules, some existing rules that are causing debate and discussion.”

Augusta National Golf Club plans to follow the new rules during the 83rd Masters, at least one of which will be welcomed on the slick bentgrass greens at Augusta National: Golfers can now repair spike marks.

Here are some of the most significant rule changes that will be in effect during the Masters:

ALIGNMENT

Rule No. 10.2b(4), which says no one can help the player with his alignment for the stroke, has already been amended.

The original rule stated that “at the moment the player begins to take his stance, the caddie must not deliberately stand directly behind the player.” The penalty is two strokes in stroke play.

In the Phoenix Open, Denny McCarthy was initially given a two-shot penalty for a breach of this rule on the fairway, but it was rescinded because McCarthy hadn’t started to take a stance to swing at the ball.

The following week, the rule, which said there would be a penalty if the caddie deliberately stood behind an extension of the line of play behind the ball, was tweaked.

The new rule said that if the caddie is unaware of his location, then there is no penalty. On the putting green, the penalty can be avoided if the player backs away and starts again without the caddie directly behind him.

THE DROP

The ball now must be dropped straight down from knee height instead of the old way, with an arm extended.

“To me, I’m not a big fan of how it looks for the game,” said Fowler, one of the most vocal critics of the new rule. “I understand dropping from your knee and going by the rules, but when you’re trying to appeal to the younger generation and get them into the game, I don’t think it looks proper or cool and people are making fun of it.”

Tiger Woods described the new knee-high drops as “really weird.”

THE FLAGSTICK

Players can now putt with the flagstick in the hole, but they must decide this before making the stroke.

Bryson DeChambeau is the most prominent player who has taken advantage of this new rule.

“Pin in is an easy one,” said the Southern Methodist graduate who has a degree in physics. “It’s statistically proven to be a benefit in 99 percent of situations. Anything outside 10 feet, I’m going to leave it in. If I accidentally hit it three feet instead of two feet past the flag, it will stay in the cup. It has a better potential of staying in the cup than with it out.”

Added DeChambeau: “There is more than just the geometry to it; it’s the visual as well. The visual perspective ... if you have a cup in the hole and it’s above the ground, you’ll hit that all day long, right? It’s much easier to have something out of the ground than looking in and dying it in.”

If he were to have a short putt to win the Masters on the 72nd hole, DeChambeau said he would leave the flagstick in because it would be a historic image.

Thomas, the 2017 PGA Tour Player of the Year, still takes the pin out on the green.

“If I have an 8-footer to win a golf tournament, I can’t really take myself seriously if I kept the pin in,” he said. “It just would be such a weird picture on TV of me celebrating and the pin is in and my ball’s up against it.”

When Francesco Molinari won the Arnold Palmer Invitational in early March, he left the flagstick in on the 72nd hole when he rolled in a 44-foot birdie putt.

LOST BALL

The time to search for a ball is reduced from five minutes to three minutes. The time of search still starts when the player or caddie begin to search. If the original ball is found, the provisional ball must be abandoned.

ELIMINATION OF PENALTIES

Damage to a green can be repaired, which includes spike marks, old hole plugs, turf plugs, shoe damage and scrapes or indentations caused by equipment or the flagstick. Any repair must be done promptly.

“The spike mark one intrigues me,” DeChambeau said. “Just because it’s related to hitting a shot in the fairway and it goes into a divot, why is that not ground for repair just like a spike mark? Somebody damaged the fairway, not through natural, whatever. It was actually damaged by a player. So why is that not repairable? Why can’t you get relief from that? So that’s kind of the only one that’s been like, eh, doesn’t make sense fully yet. But I truly appreciate it. I love tapping down spike marks. It’s great. It’s afforded me the opportunity to make more putts now because of it.”

Other cases with no penalty now are:

• There is now no penalty for an accidental double hit. The ball is played as it lies.

• There is now no penalty if a ball in motion accidentally hits the player, caddie, his equipment or the flagstick, whether removed or attended.

• There is still no penalty for a ball or ball marker accidentally moved on the green.

• There is no penalty for carrying a non-conforming club. The penalty applies only for using it.

BUNKERS

Loose impediments in a bunker can now be removed or touched, provided the ball does not move. If the ball moves as a result, there is a one-stroke penalty and the ball must be replaced.

Also, there is no longer a penalty for striking the sand in anger or frustration.

EMBEDDED BALL

The relief procedure has changed for an embedded ball. The relief area starts at the spot right behind where the ball is embedded. A ball must be dropped in the one club-length relief area, not nearer the hole than this spot. There is no longer a requirement to announce to your playing partner your intention to mark and lift the ball to check whether it is embedded.

DAMAGED CLUBS

No matter how a club is damaged, even by abusing it, the player can continue to use the club in its damaged state for the rest of the round, but he will not be allowed to replace it.

There will be no replacement of a club unfit for play (such as a cracked driver face) unless the damage is caused by an outside influence or natural forces.