RULES Outside influences
Back in November, Padraig Harrington was involved in a slightly unusual Rules incident during the Portugal Masters following a bizarre run-in with a moth. Chris Wallace, Rules manager at The R&A, explains all…
Putting out for par on the 2nd hole, Harrington looked to have comfortably rolled his five-footer safely in when the fluttering of a moth’s wings temporarily brought his round to a stop and sparked a long conversation with a Rules official. So, why was it that a moth flying away had prompted Harrington to seek advice?
Put simply, as the moth had flown away from the edge of the hole at the moment the putt had dropped, Harrington was concerned that the ball had hit the moth on its way in. Under the Rules, moths and other insects are considered to be animals which, in turn, are considered to be outside influences.
Usually, if a player’s ball in motion accidentally hits any outside influence, the ball must be played as it lies. However, there is an exception to this Rule when a ball played from the putting green accidentally hits any person, animal (such as a moth) or movable obstruction (including another ball in motion) also on the putting green (Rule 11.1b Exception 2). In this scenario, the stroke does not count and the original ball or another ball must be replaced on its original spot, meaning that Harrington would have been required to play the stroke again.
Harrington was unsure if his ball had actually touched the moth, so he sought clarification from the Rules official to establish if he would be required to re-take his putt. Exception 2 to Rule 11.1b is applied using the ‘known or virtually certain’ standard, which means that only in situations where there is knowledge or conclusive evidence that the ball played from the putting green accidentally hit the animal on the putting green would he be required to cancel the stroke and replace the ball back on its original spot.
However, the Irishman was relieved to hear that the European Tour had adopted Local Rule D-7 for the tournament. This states that the above exception applies except when a ball played from the putting green accidentally hits the player, the club used by the player to make the stroke or any animal also defined as a loose impediment (worms, insects and similar animals that can be removed easily). So, Harrington did not have to re-take his putt.