You be the judge!

[Gary Hill]

Interesting question from today's Cisco Junior Tournament at Kingsway.

These are the circumstances exactly as decribed to me by the player.

I hit my tee shot into the deep rough and only seached for it for a minute. I returned to the tee and played a provisional into the same general area. On my way back to my clubs, which I had left at the search area and within 5 minutes of my original tee shot, I found my original ball.

What's the ruling?

[spidey]

Personally, I don't believe him... but...

If his original ball is found within 5 minutes, then I would guess it should still be the ball in play.

If he went back to the tee, then he probably wasn't playing a provisional, because he had given up looking for his tee ball (unless he had a caddie or somebody else who was still looking for the ball). I wonder if he announced he was playing a provisional, rather than proceeding under the lost ball rule.

Interesting, can't wait to hear the ruling.

spidey

[LongHitta]

If the provisional shot was hit close enough to the original ball, i believe you have a total of 5 minutes to find either ball from when the first one was hit, otherwise you have 5 minutes for each ball...so i believe he is allowed to play the original if it was under 5 minutes, which i find hard to beleive....he must not of hit it very far.

[Gary Hill]

If a ball may be lost outside a water hazard or may be out of bounds the player may play another ball provisionally. The provisional ball shall be played before the player goes forward to search for the original ball.

When the player went forward and searched for the original ball, he lost his right to play a provisional ball. When he went back and played another ball from the tee, that ball automatically became the ball in play under penalty of stroke and distance.

Any further statements of finding the original ball or time taken are immediately rendered irrelevant and immaterial.

[spidey]

but... Isn't this essentially the same thing as deeming a ball lost?

I thought the first ball is only abandoned at the time that a stroke is played PAST where the original ball might lie.

Either way, I certainly agree with the ruling, especially in these circumstances.

spidey

[Gary Hill]

but... Isn't this essentially the same thing as deeming a ball lost?

A player cannot render a ball lost by a declaration. You will have to explain this analogy before I can comment on it.

I thought the first ball is only abandoned at the time that a stroke is played PAST where the original ball might lie.

No. You are mixing up the procedures for three separate issues.

1. When you can play a provisional ball.
2. When the provisional ball becomes the ball in play.
3. When the provisional ball must be abandoned.


1. The provisional ball must be played before the player goes forward to search for the original ball.

2. The provisional ball automatically becomes the ball in play if a stroke is made at the provisional ball from the place where the original ball is likely to be or a point nearer the hole than that place. Additionally, the provisional ball becomes the ball in play if the original ball is not found within 5 minutes.

3. The provisional ball shall be abandoned as soon as the original ball is found in bounds within the allotted five minutes.

In our case situation, the player lost his right to play a provisional ball the moment he left the teeing ground and went forward to search for the original ball.

Therefore, the second ball played from the teeing ground was immediately the ball in play under penalty of stroke and distance (Rule 27-1 Ball Lost). There are no "special circumstances" as to the area to which the balls where hit, the time spent in searching, or the player's erroneous declaration that it was a provisional ball.