Drops at knee height and no penalty for double hits

Around 30,000 views from all around the world helped golf ’s two main governing bodies decide on a new set of Rules, with a knee-high drop and no penalty for a double hit among changes being introduced at the start of 2019.

Proposals from the R&A and USGA last March included a ball being dropped from any height rather than shoulder level at present for relief or a penalty but that has now been altered in a bid to ensure “consistency” and “simplicity” while also “preserving the randomness of the drop”.

“Interestingly, we talked about the dropping procedure at the very first working group,” David Rickman, Executive Director – Governance at the R&A, told The Scotsman. “We recognised that it’s a really important part of the code. In some ways, it is a good representation of all that we try to achieve – a reasonably simple and quick process and one that people can work with.

“We feel that going to knee height strikes that right balance. It is going to be quicker and going to be accurate in terms of dropping in the relief area. But, equally so, it preserves that element of chance. There’s not that guarantee of getting the best possible lie and, on reflection, we felt that was an appropriate outcome.”

Club golfers in particular will welcome the decision to remove a one-stroke penalty for a “double hit”, which more often than not is totally accidental and also unavoidable.

“It doesn’t happen that often but, when it does, it is clearly a frustration to golfers,” added Rickman.

“We were keen to make this change because other accidental deflections – the ball that comes back off a bunker face or a tree that hits you – are now not going to be penalised.

“We are trying to create a code of Rules that has this degree of consistency and, given this is accidental, there is no guarantee the outcome is going to be good, bad or indifferent. We feel that a penalty is not needed.”

A number of measures aimed at trying to speed up play are included in the new set of Rules, including the introduction of a new Local Rule at club level to allow golfers the option to drop the ball in the vicinity of where the ball is lost or out of bounds under a two-stroke penalty.