I picked up my ball on the green without marking it – is there a penalty?

Steve Carroll

You’ve found the putting surface but absentmindedly picked up your ball without putting a ball-marker down. What happens now?

Thanks to Kenneth Johnston for emailing in a question I suspect has caught a few out from time to time.

“If I accidentally lift my ball on the green without putting my marker down then realise what I have done when it is my turn to play, what would the rule be, and what penalty would I incur? I have actually done it.”

As have I Kenneth and, as we’re about to see, so did a very famous player in a big tournament. So let’s reveal the answer…

Golf ball marking rules: What happens when you lift without marking first?

Yes, Jon Rahm once got caught out with this rare lapse in concentration when he picked up his ball without marking it on the 5th green at Olympia Fields in the second round of the 2020 BMW Championship.

Cue lots of headlines shouting about ‘bizarre’ rules breaches. But while it’s certainly not common at the professional level, are there any of you out there who have fallen foul?

I did in the opening week back after the first lockdown last year. Clearly being back on the fairways after so long away melted my mind.

The result was I had to add a stroke to my score.

A ball on the putting green can be lifted and cleaned but it also needs to be replaced on its original spot.

Rule 14.1a – Spot of the Ball to Be Lifted and Replaced Must Be Marked – explains that before you lift it, you’ve got to mark that spot. That’s most commonly done with a ball marker, though you can also hold a club on the ground behind or right next to the ball.

If you forget and lift the ball off the green without marking its spot, you get a penalty stroke. And if this does ever happen, make sure you put the ball back where it was before cracking on.

Got a question for our expert?

Despite the changes to the Rules of Golf in 2019 and 2023, there are still some that leave us scratching our heads. I’ll try to help by featuring the best of your queries in this column.

What do you think of this golf ball marking rule? Let me know with a comment on X.

NOW READ: I ‘lost’ my ball but found it in the hole – is it a hole in one?

About the author

Steve Carroll

A journalist for more than 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long.

A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A’s prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.

Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men’s Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.

A part of NCG’s Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He’d like to tell you he floats around 10. The reality is more like 13.

Steve plays at Sandburn Hall, in York, and is a country member at Close House in Newcastle. He has served on various club committees during his time in the game, and is the current Rules Secretary at Sandburn.

Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NCTJ exams at Darlington College of Technology. He began his career working on weekly papers in Newcastle, before joining the York Press in 2001. After five years as a news reporter, he joined the sports desk – specialising in horse racing and snooker – and was Digital Sports Editor when he joined National Club Golfer in 2016.

What’s in Steve’s bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; Caley 01T irons 4-PW; TaylorMade Hi-Toe wedges, Odyssey 2Ball Microhinge putter.

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