“We have the ability to see what can be, unburdened by what has been, and then to make the possible actually happen” In a hard-fought four-ball competition at HCC, all of the players stood on the 6th hole with modest putts for par. Opponent JD had a tricky seven-foot downhill slider. F had a downhill six-footer. His partner, RS, had a curving four-footer, and opponent AN had a straight uphill three-footer. Things weren’t looking good as F’s team was…
I. Two Balls Touching Facts (1) On two separate occasions in the same round at OEI, Sandwich found his ball touching another ball. On the first occasion, the balls were paired together in a dense rough. On the second occasion, his ball lay atop another ball in the high grass of a Penalty Area, a location from which his ball would have been playable, but for the interference posed by the underlying ball. As the players contemplated the…
Men’s Games The Men’s games are in full swing in the mountains and Foremost has to say he is impressed to date with the overwhelming adherence and devotion by all to the Rules of Golf. Certainly, “the gimmee” remains a constant and undefined variable, however, and Foremost has to admit that even he (thank you) has been the welcome recipient of perhaps-questionable gimmee concessions from time to time (“I guarantee you nobody else is putting that”, or, “it isn’t gonna…
The players were relieved when spry, young golfer RGC leapt to his feet after a scary looking slide on his backside down a muddy GUR slope off the 5th hole at BMCC. Much of the slope from the green to the sixth hole fairway was under repair from damages done by sledders over the winter snows. “No More Sledding” is now the Rule, by club edict, although RCG apparently hadn’t paid attention to this new rule as his swift and…
I. Facts “A Case for Virtue and Morality” A rather benign rules day changed suddenly and dramatically on the Par 5 6th hole of HCC with misfortunes off the tee by Player BB. His drive was eventually found just short of the pond at the base of the hill nestled snuggly in a bed of daffodil stems. F was anxious to see him play his next shot. Instead, fellow player JH offered BB immediate free relief. “Take a drop”, he…
It’s crunch time for golf course superintendents everywhere as they work frantically to get their course ready for spring! Such is certainly the case at BMCC, where clubhouse construction activities, coupled with course maintenance activities, often have golfers dodging workers and equipment seemingly at every turn. Although this work is well-managed and scheduled, and workers appear well-trained in avoiding actions which might interfere with play, the paths of work, workers, and golfers occasionally intersect. I. Facts Foremost and his group…
“ I would not have used this tee if it was a sanctioned event.” HC I. Facts Of course, all play is “sanctioned “ when Foremost is around, which is probably why he was asked to review the possibility of a serious equipment violation at BMCC by a heretofore well-respected golfer. Opponents called a foul on Reader HC who showed up and played with what his opponents suspected might be a non-conforming tee. Specifically, they questioned the directional arrow on…
Foremost doesn’t remember if customary handshakes followed the completion of play on the 18th green. “We might have a problem”, opponent JS had noted, almost before the last putt stopped rattling in the hole. A polite Rules discussion ensued and continued as the players walked off the green and around the construction fencing to the bag room. Facts F (who admittedly had been on the receiving end of several strokes in the match) was One-Up heading into the…
The difference between golf and government: “In government, you can always improve your lie.” * Facts A passionate rules discussion was underway as Foremost entered the room. Three tables of younger golfers, just returned from a team competition, were paying close attention … all with a tight hold on their wallets pending the resolution of the dispute. A penalty had been called on Player BV, a penalty which evidently would weigh on the direction and size of the final purse….
(Rules 18.2; 9.4; 7.3; 14.5; 3.2; 11; 16.1; 1.3; Def. “Lost”; Int.18.2) Foremost borrows a title from the Taylor Swift song catalogue to summarize one of his recent golf outings. The opponent, a good friend who shall remain nameless (although he has connections at the very highest level) made a loud point of criticizing F’s boring insistence on the ROG, a criticism which, in retrospect, might have been justified in this case (F usually reserves…