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A drop in golf is often a misunderstood concept, so if you’ve ever asked the question, you certainly won’t be alone.

However, in this blog, we’ll answer that question so you can drop with confidence.

What does a drop mean in golf?

In golf, if your ball lands out of bounds, in a penalty area, or in an unplayable lie, the player can put their ball back in play via a drop.

Following the drop rules in golf

Firstly, when taking relief, you must drop your ball, whether under penalty or not. If you have a caddy, they can’t drop your ball for you—that’s your responsibility.

Since 2019, the rules state that when dropping, you must do so from knee height. Before the change, dropping was instead done from shoulder height.

When the rules changed at the beginning of 2019, it was initially met with criticism regarding how silly it looked to drop the ball from knee height—but there was, in fact, some sound thinking behind it.

1. Dropping the ball from knee height

At the time of the rule change, the USGA’s Thomas Pagel explained: “It’s not just a drop from knee height, but now it’s a focus on the relief area. People say that dropping from shoulder height is simple, and it is, but under the old rules, there were nine different times you had to re-drop. We wanted to eliminate all those complications.

“In order to focus on that new relief area, we said, ‘Let’s get the player closer to the ground, and if you drop it from knee height, that ball is going to bounce a little less.’”

When dropping, the ball must first strike the ground and stay within the relief area. If it lands inside and rolls out, or vice versa, then you need to drop the ball again.

To better understand where to drop your ball, though, you need to understand where your reference point is, and these differ depending on the type of relief you’re getting.

2. Know your reference point

• If your ball is unplayable, the reference point is where the ball lies

• If your ball is in a penalty area (for example, a body of water or an area which has been defined as unplayable or where a ball is often lost), the reference point is where the ball crossed the edge of the penalty area

• If you’re taking back-on-the-line relief, the reference point is where the ball first hits the ground when dropped

• If your ball comes to rest in ‘abnormal course conditions’, such as temporary water, ground under repair, cart paths, or sprinkler heads, the reference point is the nearest point to where your ball lies. However, this can’t be nearer to the hole and is the spot where you can play your next shot with no interference from where you are dropping

You may stand either inside or outside the relief area when dropping your ball.

As of 2019, the term ‘penalty area’ has superseded ‘water hazard’. You can play the ball as it lies in a penalty area, and you can ground your club.

3. Learn the options for taking relief

What is stroke-and-distance relief?

If you’re certain that your ball is in a penalty area, you can return to where your last shot was played from, drop your ball within one club’s length, and play it with a one-shot penalty. If it were a tee shot, you could play it from any area of the tee.

What is back-on-the-line relief?

Locate where your ball last crossed the penalty area, and you can go back as far as you want on a line that keeps that point between you and the hole. You can now drop your ball, and it can move in any direction from that spot.

What is a lateral drop in golf?

Here, you can measure a relief area of two club lengths (not nearer the hole) from your reference point of crossing the penalty area and drop it in this relief area. The penalty, again, is one stroke.

Another key point to understand is the size of the relief area from your reference point. If you’re dropping from some abnormal course conditions, it’s one club length, and if you’re dropping from an unplayable ball or a ball in a red penalty area, it’s two club lengths.

If the ball doesn’t stay in the relief area, simply drop it again. If this happens for a second time, place the ball where the ball landed when you re-dropped it.

Another rule change also stipulates that the longest club in your bag cannot be your putter, so anyone using an extended putter can’t gain an advantage.

Interestingly, you can leave the headcover on your driver when measuring, but the extra length does not count.

What is a golf drop zone?

If your course has a designated golf drop zone, usually marked by a sign or lines painted onto the course, you may choose to drop your ball in this zone when taking relief. For some courses, using the drop zone is mandatory, though not always. Designed to speed up play, you’ll often find them near common golf hazards, such as water hazards.

Points to remember

Before lifting your ball, you must mark the spot. You can use a ball marker behind or next to the ball, or hold a club on the ground right behind or right next to your ball. If you fail to do either of these, you will receive one penalty stroke.

You can clean your ball when it is on the putting green or when you’re taking free relief or a penalty drop. However, you CAN NOT clean your ball when:

• checking to see if it’s cut or cracked
• lifting it to identify it, though you can clean the mud away to do so
• it is interfering with another player away from the green
• checking to see if it has settled into an indentation—however, if you take relief from an embedded ball, you are then allowed to clean it

If you fail to comply with the above, you will be penalised one stroke. 

Dropping in golf can take a while to get the hang of, particularly if you’re new to the game. However, read up on the rules mentioned above and refer to this guide the next time you need to take a drop. You’ll be dropping with confidence in no time.

Golf drop rules: FAQs

What is the penalty for a drop in golf?

Generally, there is a one-stroke penalty for a drop in golf. However, if you do not follow the rules correctly and a ball is dropped wrong and still played, you could face a two-stroke penalty.

Can you drop out of a bunker in golf?

You can drop out of a bunker in golf; however, you will take a one or two-stroke penalty depending on where you choose to drop the ball.

If you drop your ball within two club lengths but still inside the bunker, or take your next shot from where you made your last shot, then you will incur a one-stroke penalty.

If you use the back-on-the-line method to be able to drop your ball outside of the bunker, you will incur a two-stroke penalty.

Do you have to use a drop zone in golf?

You’ll usually find that using a golf drop zone is optional. However, you should check the local rules to see whether using the golf drop zone is mandatory at your course.

Specialist golf insurance through Golf Care

Being clued up on the rules when it comes to dropping in golf will make you a more competent and confident player. However, if you play golf regularly, you might want to consider specialist golf insurance to help financially protect you and your golf equipment. Get a quote online today.

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Stableford is one of the most popular ways of playing a round of golf, and a great chance to diversify your round if you’re eager for a challenge away from stroke play or match play. To fully appreciate and play the format, you’ll need to understand Stableford scoring.

Similarly to match play, in Stableford, you compete for points based on your performance on each hole. But that’s really where the similarities end, because Stableford scoring has more caveats than simply winning a point for a hole.

In this guide, you’ll learn how to score in Stableford, how your handicap will affect proceedings, and why it’s such a good way to diversify your playing experience.

How does Stableford scoring work?

In a round of Stableford, you’ll compete with your playing partner for points on each individual hole. Unlike in stroke play, where the winner of the round is the golfer with the lowest score, you’ll actually be competing for the most points and the highest score.

As a general rule, the points in Stableford scoring are as follows:

• Six points: four under par
• Five points: three under par
• Four points: two under par
• Three points: one under par
• Two points: level par
• One point: one stroke over
• Zero points: more than one stroke over

Ultimately, it’s the event committee that is responsible for the specific number of points available. However, you’ll likely find that this is the most common Stableford scoring format.

Handicaps in Stableford

As is standard in lots of golf formats, your golf handicap can have an effect on Stableford scoring.

It’s up to you whether you play for a gross score – without the inclusion of handicaps – or for a net score, where handicaps are included. This might be the preferable option if you’re playing against someone whose skillset differs noticeably from yours.

When handicaps are included, players receive extra shots on some holes as determined by the stroke index. Typically, the most difficult holes are given low scores on this stroke index, and so those are the ones which you’d receive extra shots on.

• For example, a player with a handicap of 10 would receive one extra shot on each of holes 1-10 on the stroke index. So, if one of these holes typically had a par of four, you can now consider it as having a par of five, giving you a little more leeway if you were to play a scratch golfer.
• A player with an even higher handicap, such as 28, would receive two extra shots on holes 1-10 and then one extra shot from holes 11-18.

It’s important to remember that the holes where you get extra shots are in accordance with the corresponding stroke indexes (unless you have a handicap of 18 or 36, which would result in receiving one or two additional shots, respectively, on every single hole), not where they’re located on the course.

This means that a higher handicap could give a golfer a significant advantage when it comes to Stableford scoring. Still, it’s essential to remember that handicaps are in place for the sake of fairness. One or two additional shots may equate to a real boost, but ultimately, a scratch golfer will still have more than a good enough chance to win the round against someone with a higher handicap.

With your handicap included, a respectable and expected score would be 36. However, in other formats, such as modified Stableford, this wouldn’t be the case.

What is modified Stableford?

There are instances where points differ noticeably from the standard scoring system. This is known as modified Stableford. For example, a game involving higher handicap players may offer more points for bogeys (one over par), such as two instead of one.

Alternatively, for a competition involving scratch golfers or those with lower handicaps, points can be made harsher. At the professional level, minus points are awarded for anything below par. An example of a modified Stableford is as follows:

• Eight points – three below par
• Five points – two below par
• Two points – one below par
• Zero points – level with par
• Minus one point – one above par
• Minus three points – more than one above par

You’ll see modified Stableford once a year on the PGA Tour in the Barracuda Championship.

If you and your playing partner are of a similar ability, modified Stableford scoring could offer a slightly different challenge, and one which is more suited to your needs.

The history of Stableford

Dr Frank Stableford was the man who invented Stableford all the way back in 1898. It was first played at Glamorganshire Golf Club in Wales and has only grown in popularity since.

Stableford’s intentions when coming up with the scoring system were to ensure one or two bad holes didn’t put off golfers. The beauty of Stableford scoring is that one poor hole can’t derail an entire round, because you have 17 other chances to pick up as many as six points each.

This is one of the key differences between a regular game of stroke play and Stableford. In stroke play, one bad hole can have a significant impact on your final score. Whereas, if you use Stableford scoring, you can shrug off one poor hole and move on.

Stableford has been used in competition since 1932, and it remains a popular scoring system throughout the UK and the world to this day.

FAQs

Can Stableford be played in groups?

Yes. The four-ball better-ball format is commonly used in tandem with Stableford. Here, each golfer uses their own ball, and only the best performance counts towards the final score.
Can Stableford contribute towards a handicap?

Yes and no. After a round, you can still post your score for your handicap, but not in Stableford scoring terms. Instead, convert your score back to what it would’ve been as a standard round of stroke play, and it can be used for your handicap.

Why should I play Stableford?

Stableford scoring offers a distinct ethos compared to match play or stroke play. There’s an element of forgiveness, whereby parity and speed of play are at the forefront of the experience.

It’s a more straightforward way of calculating who wins. All you need to do is add up your points and see who has more. One bad hole won’t wreck your round, and if you can no longer win any points on a hole, you don’t have to finish it.

With the inclusion of handicaps, any game is a fair game, and you’re all but guaranteed to have a fun and competitive experience on the course.

Specialist golf insurance through Golf Care

Before you head out on the course to try Stableford scoring, you may want to consider getting specialist golf insurance.

With specialist golf insurance through Golf Care, policies include Equipment Cover of up to £7,500 and Public Liability of up to £10m, so you can play with peace of mind. Get a quote today. 

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