Moral Of This Story: Don't Be So Quick To Pick Up Your Provisional

Nancy Amour on Mark Calcaveccia's nine Saturday:

Calcavecchia's drive landed in a bunker, and he had to play out sideways. His third shot, from the fairway, sailed right and disappeared into the gorse. Thinking the ball was lost, Calcavecchia played a provisional and then went to search for the first ball.

Told his ball had been found, Calcavecchia picked up the provisional. But then he discovered the found ball wasn't his, and he wasn't able to locate it before the five-minute limit expired.

That meant Calcavecchia took the stroke-and-distance penalty (two shots) under the lost-ball rule, and lost another stroke on the penalty for lifting a provisional without authority.

Comments

[Weekender]

A lesson every J6P in golfdom who gives one whit about the rules has taken to heart early on. Amazing to me that a seasoned veteran like Calc would make such a silly mistake. Even more amazing that his caddy would let him. I don't know if Mrs. Calc's CV is up to par (sorry) but, for me, that's a Miles Byrne-ish blunder.

[Weekender]

One more thing...

"and lost another stroke on the penalty for lifting a provisional without authority"

Is that really it? Wasn't it a violation of 18-2a? What the hell is "lifting a provisional without authority"? That phrase may be used somewhere within the RoG and decisions but I've never heard it.

[rt626]

The stroke and distance penalty is one shot, not two. See Rule 27-1a.