Modern set of rules unveiled to make it easier to play

MEXICo CITY

Golf’s two governing bodies released a draft of modern rules Wednesday aimed at bringing common sense to what can be a complicated sport.

The Royal & Ancient Golf Club and the U.S. Golf Association spent more than five years trying to simplify the Rules of Golf without stripping the centuries-old game of its traditions and fundamentals of fair play. The result figures to be the most comprehensive overhaul since the first set of rules was published in 1744.

But in this case, the Rules of Golf actually shrunk.

The proposal, which now faces six months of public feedback, reduces the number of rules from 34 to 24.

In many cases, penalties have been rescinded. Players no longer will be assessed a oneshot penalty if their golf ball accidentally moves, if their club touches the ground while in a hazard or even if a putt strikes a flagstick that is not being tended.

Remember when Jeff Maggert’s shot from a fairway bunker caromed off the lip and hit him in the chest? That cost him a two-shot penalty in the 2003 Masters. Under the proposed rules, it wouldn’t be a penalty.

“The primary objective was, ‘How do we make the rules easier to understand and easier to apply around the world,” said Thomas Pagel, the USGA’s senior director of rules and amateur status.

Rory McIlroy has been informed of the changes and liked what he heard.

“I think golf’s emphasis on the rules can sometimes turn people away from it,” McIlroy said. “To modernize and make it simple is a good thing.”

Depending on the six-month public comment period, the proposal would be finalized in 2018 and become effective in 2019.

One of the proposed rules would penalize caddies who stand behind their players until right before the shot, to help them with alignment. That is most prominent on the LPGA Tour.

Another significant proposal, which got McIlroy’s attention, was how to drop. The goal was to get the ball back in play quickly. Modern rules would more easily identify where to drop, and players would only have to hold the ball above the ground without it touching anything. The recommendation is at least an inch above the ground or grass.

Currently, players have to stand upright and hold the ball at shoulder height and arm’s length from their bodies.