Did you know the USGA Rules team fields nearly 20,000 questions a year from golfers via phone, email, and the USGA Rules of Golf mobile app? The “hotline” is free and open to anyone, and we allow questions to be submitted 24/7.
If you’re wondering what the most common questions were from 2025, Todd Stice of the USGA Rules team has the answer:
How do I take relief from a cart path?
In taking free relief from a cart path, the player must find the nearest point of complete relief (NPCR) as the reference point. This is the spot where a ball would lie and where the player would have no interference from the cart path, including stance, lie of ball or area of intended swing. This spot must be in bounds on the golf course and not in a bunker, penalty area or on the putting green. The player may then drop a ball within one club-length of that NPCR, no nearer the hole.
How do I take relief from either a red or yellow penalty area?
In taking one-stroke penalty relief from a penalty area, the player has 2 options for a ball in a yellow penalty area (YPA) and 3 options for a red penalty area (RPA). For a YPA, the first option is stroke and distance. The player may play from the spot of the previous stroke; if this happens to be the teeing area, the player may tee up the ball again. The second option is back-on-the-line relief. The player may drop a ball on a line that keeps the estimated point where the original ball last crossed the edge of the penalty area between the hole and the spot where the ball is dropped, with no limit as to how far back the ball may be dropped.
If a ball is in an RPA, the two YPA options are still available, but there is also a third option called lateral relief. The player may drop a ball within two club-lengths of the spot where the ball last crossed the edge of the RPA, no nearer the hole.
Do I get a penalty if I accidentally hit my cart, clubs or myself with a stroke?
When a ball is in motion after a stroke and is accidentally deflected by the player’s cart, any other equipment (including clubs), or even the player themselves, there is no penalty and the ball will be played from where it comes to rest.
If I make a practice swing and accidentally cause my ball to move, is that a penalty and where do I play it from?
The answer depends on the area of the course the ball was in when it was moved. If the ball is in the teeing area or on the putting green, there is no penalty. However, if the ball is anywhere else, such as in a bunker, penalty area or the general area (which includes fairway, rough or fringe of the green), then the player gets 1 penalty stroke. In all of these cases, the ball must be replaced on its original spot (but in the teeing area, the ball may be re-teed anywhere in the teeing area).
Can I… tap down a divot or some grass near my ball… move sand near my ball… rake footprints in a bunker left by the group in front of me… break a branch that is in my backswing?
The Rules of Golf have two great principles: Play the ball as it lies and the course as it is found. Therefore, a player may not press down a divot or grass near the ball if that would improve the lie of the ball (or the player’s stance, swing, or line of play). If there is sand near the ball, it may only be removed from the putting green or the teeing area, but nowhere else on the course (if it would cause an improvement to one of those areas mentioned above). Footprints left in a bunker may be raked for the care of the course, only if it does not improve the player’s lie, stance, area of intended swing, or line of play. So, if those footprints are not near your ball, go ahead and rake them. If you have a branch in your backswing, you cannot break it off if that were to improve the area of your backswing. However, if you break a branch during your stroke and you complete the stroke, there is no penalty.