As for double hits, if a player hits his ball twice in one stroke, accidentally or intentionally, he must count the original stroke and incur a one-stroke penalty, and then play it where it lies. In effect, it’s a one-shot penalty.

2019 Rule: Under Rule 10.1a, if the player’s club accidentally hits the ball more than once during a single stroke: There will be no penalty and the ball will be played as it lies.

Whether it’s a tough lie or bad technique, double hits can unfortunately occur although they are fairly uncommon. They are most often caused by flipping the clubhead past your hands with your wrists. As you scoop under the ball and the ball pops up, your clubhead can hit it again as it’s racing past your hands.

No Penalty to Any Player If a player’s ball in motion accidentally hits any person or outside influence: There is no penalty to any player. This is true even if the ball hits the player, the opponent or any other player or any of their caddies or equipment.

If you hit the flag it’s 2 stroke penalty in stroke play or loss of hole if you are in match play. If you are off of the green there is no penalty if you hit the flag unless you ask someone to tend it and then they don’t pull it out.

The test results were conclusive: You will hole a higher percentage of putts when you leave the flagstick in. The reason for this effect is that a significant amount of energy is lost from a putt’s speed when the ball hits a fiberglass flagstick. Putt 12 balls from a three-foot circle all the way around the hole.

Changes brought in the by Royal and Ancient and the USGA, golf’s two ruling bodies, amended the rules for 2019. The bodies decided on the alteration because they believe “allowing a player to putt with the flagstick in the hole without fear of penalty should generally help speed up play”.

According to golf writer, Dave Pelz, the reason behind this philosophy is that a significant amount of energy is lost from a putt’s speed when the ball hits a fiberglass flagstick. The speed-loss allows gravity to pull the slower moving ball straight down into the cup more often than not. The pin is your friend.

: stopping or resting on a line that is roughly even with the hole one is playing toward —used of an approach shot in golf.

Pin high is right distance, wrong aim. Pin low is right aim wrong (short) distance.

Hitting It Pin High Picture the putting surface from front to back; pin high or hole high means your ball comes to rest even with the pin, or flagstick. You didn’t leave the ball short and you didn’t hit it long—your shot was pin high. Pin high is often used as a kind of consolation when a golfer’s direction is off.

What does it mean to be a scratch golfer? A scratch golfer is someone who has around a zero handicap. This means that the player will usually shoot right around par on any given course.

Pin high means that your golf ball is located in line with the pin but not near the pin. If you hit a shot ten yards to the right of the pin, but it was the right distance, you are pin high.

hole placement

The yardage of any given golf hole is reported on the scorecard and usually on a marker at the teeing ground. And assuming the golf course is using the correct procedure for measuring hole lengths, all yardages given are to the center of the greens.