The wind, the rules, and Lookout Mountain

[herrstein]

Hey Boys. Been a long time since I have posted. I have many young children now, things have gotten busy. Still, I have time for some golf, and was playing in the Lookout Mountain Swing Ding, the annual Member-guest, when I saw something I have never seen before.
During the afternoon Championship match Sunday, the wind came up, gradually intensifying into a pretty steady 45 knot breeze. I was following the championship match as they teed off the 12th, a short uphill dogleg left, into the wind.
As they came to their tee shots, the group ahead in the consolation was up on the green with two rules officials. Play was stopped. 200 people stood around the green, watching, awaiting the championship match. I went up to see what was happening.
The wind would not allow the balls to stay in position on the green at the front left hole position.
Finally they decided they had to move the pin to the back left to continue play. This they did; the players then hit their approaches at the green (no one hit it), and were able to secure their bogeys and get on to the next.
Anyone ever seen such a thing?javascript:void(0);
The course was firm, fast, vexing. My poor partner said he learned more about golf in three days than he had learned in the prior 20 years.
Ultimately he figured it out, as good players will; he made the shots that finally won our match as I continued my ignominious slide into mediocrity.

[Jim_Kennedy]

Doug,

Glad to see you posting again.

If I remember correctly they had to do something like that at the Player's this year. During the round, and after a long rain delay, they relocated a cup  because the green was too wet. 

[Patrick_Mucci]

Doug,

I think a similar incident happened in the 1970 MET OPEN at Ridgewood on the 8th hole West, when the hole was cut too high into the slope.

[John_Cullum]

I have never seen it happen, but relocating a hole for match paly is no big deal.

It is a very big deal for stroke play however. I would be surprised to learn they relocated a hole at the Player's Championship after any competitor had played the hole.

[Patrick_Mucci]

John,

The MET Open is at stroke play.

[Pete_Pittock]

No problem in match play because players are treated equally. This decision, new in 2010 covers the situation.


33-2b/1.5  Committee Wishes to Move Hole During Stroke-Play Round Due to Severity of Location
Q. During a round in a stroke-play competition, the Committee discovers that one of the holes is positioned such that the ball will not stop near the hole due to the severity of the slope at the hole. As a result, the majority of players who have played the hole have taken an excessive number of putts to hole out. What are the Committee’s options in such circumstances?
A. There is no good solution in such a case, and the Committee, taking into account all factors (e.g., how severe the hole location is, how many players have completed play of the hole and where the hole is in the round), should take the course of action that it considers to be the fairest to all the players. In the circumstances described, the following are examples of actions the Committee may take:
(a)  Have play continue with the hole location unchanged on the basis that the conditions are the same for all players in the field;
(b)  Keep the hole in the same location but take some action, e.g., watering the putting green between groups, to make the hole location less severe;
(c)  Declare the round null and void and have all players start the round again;
(d)  Suspend play, relocate the hole and have the players who played the hole return at the conclusion of their rounds to replay the hole. The score for the hole for these players is the score achieved when the hole is replayed;
(e)  Have all players disregard their score for the hole in question and play another hole (whether on the competition course or elsewhere) for their score for the hole.
Options (d) and (e) should be taken only in extreme circumstances because they alter the stipulated round for some or all players. (New)

 

[Chris Cupit]

Hey Doug--let's tee it up some time--it has been forever.

This happened a few years ao on the 16th green at Linville.  Hole was front left and if you missed it rolled twenty feet offthe green.  Match play so the hole was moved and everything was fine.

[Jim_Kennedy]

I have never seen it happen, but relocating a hole for match paly is no big deal.

It is a very big deal for stroke play however. I would be surprised to learn they relocated a hole at the Player's Championship after any competitor had played the hole.

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/sports/vedra-126463-fla-weather.html

[David Federman]

Interesting dilemma - didn't this happen at the US open at Shinni on the 7th hole during final round? The first few groups played it miserably - then they began  to water the hole between groups. First few groups really got screwed - but the hole was horrid even after being watered.

[John_Cullum]

I have never seen it happen, but relocating a hole for match paly is no big deal.

It is a very big deal for stroke play however. I would be surprised to learn they relocated a hole at the Player's Championship after any competitor had played the hole.

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/sports/vedra-126463-fla-weather.html

I see they only moved it 4 1/2 feet. I can assure you it was a last resort, and it was the only viable option

[Jim_Kennedy]

John,
The fact that they moved the cup 4 1/2' at the TPC and from one end of the green to the other at LM is immaterial, in both instances the cups were moved as a "last resort" and the moves were the"only viable option", and even though you "would be surprised to learn they relocated a hole at the Player's Championship after any competitor had played the hole" that is exactly what happened at both clubs.

[John_Cullum]

No. The Lookout Mountain event was match play. A committee wouldn't hesitate to relocate a hole in match play.

They would likely have cancelled the round at TPC if they had to move the hole in a way that substanially changed the playing characteristics.

[herrstein]

The really interesting thing about it was that it was moved after they had already teed off on the hole. The move from front left to back right makes the position of the tee shot relevant, at least.
I agree, though, in match play it doesn't matter. Some of the members were grousing, but they had to do something or the hole would not have been completed, period.

[Pete_Pittock]

I have never seen it happen, but relocating a hole for match paly is no big deal.

It is a very big deal for stroke play however. I would be surprised to learn they relocated a hole at the Player's Championship after any competitor had played the hole.

http://www.brownsvilleherald.com/sports/vedra-126463-fla-weather.html

I see they only moved it 4 1/2 feet. I can assure you it was a last resort, and it was the only viable option

Not quite. The article says they moved it a few feet after a 4 1/2 hour rain delay.