The following actions performed during a put are prohibited:
- DOUBLE HITS – The head of the putter hits the ball twice
- HITTING THE HOLE – The putter hits, touches or comes into contact with the hole.
- HITTING OTHER BALLS – Hitting other balls with the putter when playing one´s own
- DRAGGING THE BALL – When the putter remains in contact with the ball after the impact and the ball is swept by the putter head.
- PLAYING THE WRONG BALL – This occurs when:
– A player plays a ball when it is not his turn.
– A player plays his partner´s ball when playing in pairs or his own wrong ball in singles
In these situations the shot is cancelled, the balls are returned to the place they were in before being played and the offending player misses that turn (his hit is not repeated).
If the wrong ball is played twice, that´s to say, by a player from one team and then one from the other, both shots are cancelled and the hole is played again from the start with no penalties applied.
NOTES about Double hits:
– If a situation arises in which both competitors agree that two balls are touching each other side by side, a player may hit his ball forward, without touching the other ball with his club, and this is not considered to be a DOUBLE HIT. The stroke is allowed and the game continues with no penalty applied.
– If it is not noticeable that the club head hits the same ball more than once and the ball moves another one which is less than the length of one club away, it is considered to be a DOUBLE HIT if the ball it hits moves a distance longer than the length of a club.
– When a DOUBLE HIT is likely to happen (between two balls or a ball and the hole) either of the two players may film the stroke in slow motion with any device and request that the positions of the balls to be played be marked. If the recording shows that the fault has been committed the balls are returned to their original place with the penalty applied as described in the previous case.
