November 2020
RULE 13 – The Putting Green
You can always mark, lift and clean your ball on the Putting Green. You can remove sand and soil and repair pitch marks that are on the Putting Green even if your ball is not on the Green, but you cannot do this anywhere else on the Course.
On the Putting Green you can repair damage caused by a person or outside influence including ball marks, shoe damage, old hole plugs, animal damage, such as hoof indentations, and embedded objects such as a stone, acorn or tee.
But you cannot and MUST NOT repair –
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- Aeration holes and grooves from verti-cutting
- Damage resulting from irrigation or rain
- Bare or diseased areas
- Natural wear of the hole
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There is no penalty if any player accidentally causes the ball or ball marker to move on the Putting Green. Replace the ball on its original spot which if not known must be estimated. If natural forces – wind, water, or gravity – cause your ball to move on the Putting Green play the ball as it lies unless you have previously marked and lifted it. Once you have marked and lifted the ball it owns that spot and must always be replaced on that spot.
There is no penalty for accidentally touching the line of play on the Putting Green as long as you are not testing or improving the area of your intended stroke.
