The Masters week is at all times full of pleasure and fascinating conditions. Throughout final yr’s version, one such incident precipitated fairly a stir, and the keenest observers could recall what occurred to Collin Morikawa on the placing inexperienced on the sixth gap in the course of the first spherical.
Morikawa had changed his ball on the inexperienced, however earlier than he might make his stroke, the ball moved. Throughout the reside TV broadcast, some viewers seen that the participant had changed the ball a number of centimeters in entrance of the ball marker, solely to then transfer the identical marker instantly behind the ball.
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Collin Morikawa, outcomes
The video rapidly unfold throughout the online, sparking a debate amongst armchair pundits. However what actually occurred? To make clear the scenario, let’s speak about Rule 13.1, which permits the participant to do sure issues which can be usually not permitted outdoors the placing inexperienced, similar to: Marking, lifting, cleansing, and changing a ball;Repairing harm brought on by anybody or any outdoors affect;Eradicating unfastened impediments and movable obstructions;Changing a ball moved by pure forces (provided that it was already marked and lifted beforehand).
However again to Morikawa’s scenario, whom I additionally had the fortune to officiate in the course of the Ryder Cup in Rome. On TV, it wasn’t obvious that Morikawa’s ball had moved after being marked, lifted, and accurately changed. Rule 13.1d(2) states that “if pure forces trigger a participant’s ball to maneuver on the placing inexperienced, the spot the place the participant should play from subsequent is dependent upon whether or not the ball was already lifted and changed on the placing inexperienced: Ball Already Lifted and Changed: The ball have to be changed on the spot from which it moved (which if not recognized have to be estimated), even when it was moved by pure forces and never by the participant, opponent, or an outdoor affect.
Ball Not But Lifted and Changed: The ball have to be performed from its new spot (as it could in another space of the course).” It is clear, due to this fact, that Morikawa, having already lifted the ball, adopted the right process and changed the ball on the spot from which it moved.
The participant himself additionally clarified the “thriller” of the marker’s motion: “Once I addressed the ball, it moved, so I randomly positioned the marker on the bottom, changed the ball on the unique spot from which it moved, after which correctly marked it.” He then humorously added, “I at all times play by the principles, I swear!” In essence, it is helpful to do not forget that when a ball on the inexperienced has already been marked and lifted, this motion “fixes without end” that spot on the bottom, so no matter occurs, the ball should at all times get replaced there.
This rule has been modified through the years; up to now, as soon as the ball was changed, it needed to be performed from its new spot. There have been conditions by which a marked, lifted, and changed ball on the inexperienced ended up in a penalty space after a gust of wind, and the participant needed to then drop with a penalty!
