Minnesota Golfer - Spring 2009 - 16

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>> Rules Primer
Rule 11-Teeing Ground
Think you know everything about preparing to hit
from the tee box? You might need a mulligan.
By Joseph Oberle
I
t's easy to take the teeing ground for granted. At first glance,
you simply walk between the tee markers, put a tee with
a ball in the ground and swing away. Even the rule, Rule
11-Teeing Ground, is not overly long or complicated, but the
fact is, there is more there than meets the eye.
" The teeing ground is just as important as the hole, " says MGA
tournament director Doug Hoffmann. " You want to get the ball
in the hole, but you are not playing golf unless you start at the
teeing ground. It is extremely important because it is part of
the definition of the game of golf. "
There are several provisions to note regarding the teeing ground,
including the actual dimensions of the teeing area. Rather than
simply a line between the two tee markers, the teeing area is actually
a rectangular box with the two markers defining the outside
and front edges, and two club lengths backward determining
its depth (see Definitions).
A ball is considered outside the teeing area when all
of it lies outside the designated area. A player can stand
outside the area when hitting, but at least part of the ball
must be inside the area. And moving the markers is not
allowed, even if you don't think they are lined up correctly.
Rule 11-1 states that the ball must be placed on the ground or
on a tee. When a ball is teed, the tee must be placed in or on the
teeing ground surface and it must conform to regulations. (A tee
is defined as " a device designed to raise the ball off the ground
... not longer than 4 inches. " A pencil, for example, is not such
a device.) The tee can be " sand or other natural substance
placed on the surface of the teeing ground. " The ball may
be placed on an irregularity of surface, even one created
by the player. However, anything else non-conforming
results in disqualification.
" If you only read Rule 11, you are going to miss an important
addendum, " says Hoffmann. " Rule 11 doesn't explicitly
tell you that you can create and eliminate irregularities of
surface. It says you can use them to tee up the golf ball, but it
doesn't specifically state that you can create them or eliminate
them as does Rule 13-2. "
Exploring further, Rule 13-2-Improving Lie, contains the
following provision related to Rule 11-1 that allows for improving
irregular conditions: " The player incurs no penalty if
the action [of improving a lie] occurs in creating or eliminating
14
MINNESOTAGOLFER April/May 2009
ILLUSTRATION BY NANCY SPEIR
Rule 11-1 allows you tee it up
on " sand or other natural
substance placed on the surface
of the teeing ground. " Gophers
do not qualify.
irregularities of surface within the teeing ground (Rule 11-1) or
in removing of dew, frost or water from the teeing ground. "
Finally, for those who insist on counting a stroke when a
competitor inadvertently knocks the ball off the tee before he
or she actually swings at it, Rule 11-3 says that's not a stroke.
The ball is not yet in play. But don't whiff and then knock it off.
That's a stroke for the whiff, plus a penalty for moving a ball in
play. If this happens, remember you must replace (re-tee) your
ball or it becomes a two-stroke penalty (Rule 18-2). Lying three
is no way to begin a hole. And just so we're all clear-there are
no rules allowing for a mulligan on the first or any tee.
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Minnesota Golfer - Spring 2009

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