May Rule of the month 2026
(2) Accepting Player’s “Reasonable Judgment” in Determining a Location When Applying the Rules.
If a player becomes aware of a wrong determination before the stroke is made, it must be corrected (see Rule 14.5).
Many Rules require a player to determine a spot, point, line, edge, area or other location under the Rules, such as:
- Estimating where a ball last crossed the edge of a penalty area,
- Estimating or measuring when dropping or placing a ball in taking relief, or
- Replacing a ball on its original spot (whether the spot is known or estimated).
- Determining the area of the course where the ball lies, including whether the ball lies on the course, or
Determining whether the ball touches or is in or on an abnormal course condition.
Such determinations about location need to be made promptly and with care but often cannot be precise.
So long as the player does what can be reasonably expected under the circumstances to make an accurate determination, the player’s reasonable judgment will be accepted even if, after the stroke is made, the determination is shown to be wrong by video evidence or other information.