If You Run Out Of Golf Balls, Are You Disqualified?

There’s a great story I once heard from Carnoustie Golf Links about a group of visitors who played off on the last tee time of a summer’s day.

As the staff back at base were getting ready to shut up shop, with darkness encroaching, they realised the last group was nowhere to be seen. They hadn’t completed their game and there was no word from them.

A course marshal was sent out on a buggy to check they were ok, and he came towards them acting strangely way back on the 12^th hole. He watched on as one of the four hit a shot and then started running after it. He picked it up and then ran back to the group.

The marshal got near enough to shout over, “Hey – what’s going on?” One of the visitors held his hand up to show, and shouted back to confirm that the foursome were down to their, “Last ball!”

It may or may not be true. Carnoustie is tough enough though that I can definitely believe the tale. I always think those guys must have been very unfortunate or just didn’t search very hard to not find some other “lost” balls while they were trudging around in the rough.

Anyway, that’s a convoluted way to getting round to our question. If you run out of golf balls, are you disqualified under the Rules?

The basic answer to that is no.

Rule 4.2a says that you must play a conforming ball during your round, but you may get a conforming ball to play from anyone else, including another player on the course.

So, if you run out of balls and you’ve been nice to your playing partners, you can just borrow one from them. If your pal is on an adjacent hole, you might be able to shout across and borrow one from them.

If you’re seriously unpopular and nobody will lend you a ball, you could try looking for one in some bushes or maybe, you might be close enough to your car or the pro shop to get some more.

You would have to be careful with those last options though as you could be in danger of breaking Rule 5.6 and unreasonably delaying play, for which you would receive a penalty stroke for a first breach.

Ah, you say, what about when Tiger Woods was down to his last ball in the 2000 US Open at Pebble Beach? Why was Steve Williams in such a panic if he could have just borrowed one from his playing partner?

Well, that’s because in most elite level professional tournaments, the organisers use the “One Ball Rule.” That’s a Model Local Rule G-4, which says the player must use the same brand and model of conforming ball during a round.

It’s very specific. So, if you play a Titleist Pro V1 it must be the same model of Titleist Pro V1 you use all the way round. Play a different iteration of Pro V1 (of which there are many) and you would be in breach of G-4.

It’s one penalty stroke for each hole you make a stroke on which is in breach of this local rule and, if you realised you were playing with a ball in breach of the rule and then teed off with the same ball on the following hole, you would be disqualified.

So, if Tiger had lost his last ball, he would have needed to find one, or be given one of exactly the same make and model to not be in breach of the one ball rule.

But don’t panic, the one ball rule is seldom used at non-elite level so if one of us mere mortals runs out of balls, we don’t have to worry unless we can’t find any generous sorts in the vicinity to show a bit of charity and lend us one.

Rules Quiz