Do you think this is fair?

[jeffc]

It was just as fair as Tiger vs. the boulder on the 13th hole during the 1999 Phoenix Open - that was some loose impediment !!!

As memory serves me, that rule was changed shortly after that occuring.

[Kilroy]

It was just as fair as Tiger vs. the boulder on the 13th hole during the 1999 Phoenix Open - that was some loose impediment !!!

... That resulted in a rules change...

Very rare in this game.

[AAA]

As memory serves me, that rule was changed shortly after that occuring.

Please don't proliferate this myth. The Decision was introduced and published some time before the Woods incident

[Kilroy]

Really? Then how was it that Woods was allowed said assistance in moving the impediment?

[fundonny]

Maybe it was an RCGA thing??????

[AAA]

See Decision 23-1/2 which is appropriately titled "Large Stone Removable Only with Much Effort." This decision states that stones that are not solidly embedded can be of any size and still be considered a loose impediment. As long as it can be removed without unduly delaying play, the player may remove it. And see Decision 23-1/3, which asks the question: "May spectators, caddies, fellow-competitors, etc., assist a player in removing a large loose impediment?" The answer is "Yes."
These decisions were in the book long before Tiger’s situation occurred. (In fact, Decision 23-1/3 derives from an incident that took place a half-century ago in England.

http://www.usga.org/news/2009/januar...entRuling.html

[AAA]

Maybe it was an RCGA thing??????

Strictly speaking the RCGA Rules are the R&A Rules, which are exactly the same as the USGA Rules.

[Kilroy]

You are correct AAA Thanks for pointing that out. I was sure that had been changed after the Tiger incident, but apparently NOT.

23-1/2 Large Stone Removable Only with Much Effort
Q. A player’s ball lies in the rough directly behind a loose stone the size of a watermelon. The stone can be removed only with much effort. Is it a loose impediment which may be removed?
A. Yes. Stones of any size (not solidly embedded) are loose impediments and may be removed, provided removal does not unduly delay play
(Rule 6-7).
23-1/3 Assistance in Removing Large Loose Impediment
Q. May spectators, caddies, fellow-competitors, etc., assist a player in removing a large loose impediment?
A. Yes.

[BC MIST]

... That resulted in a rules change...

Very rare in this game.

A lot of people think that this is true. However, pages 537 to 555 of the 2008 decisions book outlines all the rules changes, new decisions, revised decisions, and even a number of withdrawn decisions, suggesting that the rules are constantly evolving and improving.

Be ready for other interesting changes come 2012 or perhaps even earlier. (No, one still has to play from a divot, and yes, one can still drop from fairway to rough.)

[fundonny]

Rules are made to be taken advantage of. As per post 2.