I’ve written loads about golf ball searches over the years. Can you get double time if you’re looking for two balls? Can you halt the timer if you need to let a group through? What about if you want to prevent your opponent from searching? I thought I’d covered all the angles.
Then I got this email: “I have a question with regards to looking for a lost ball.
“I know the rule states 3 minutes from the time the caddy or player start looking. But what about club golf? Most of the time everyone chips in to look for a lost ball, and often the person who lost the ball is the last one to arrive.
“Some players think that the clock starts when they start searching for their ball. In some instances, this can be two or three minutes after the first person in the group started looking. This obviously has a knock-on effect in terms of slowing play, which winds up everyone behind them.
“So [is] the first person who starts looking considered as “the caddy” and the clock starts?”
A new question requires a new answer. Let’s take a look at the rules on golf ball search times…
Golf ball search times: When does the clock start?
When is a ball lost? Rule 18.2a says it’s when it is not found in three minutes “after the player or their caddie begins to search for it”.
There you have it. It’s only when the player or caddie starts the hunt that the timer begins. Now, I’m sure the more cynical among you are furiously sticking your hands up in the air.
Firstly, have more faith in your fellow player! I’m sure no one would ever consider dawdling to a ball and sneaking a couple of extra minutes of search time by letting their playing partners sniff around like beagles in the area where the ball might be.
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But if they did there is something in the Rules that should make them think again about carrying out such a heinous act.
If you move away from the 25 rules and look up the definition of Lost, you will find rules chiefs have thought hard about this.
It states: “If a player deliberately delays the start of the search in order to allow other people to search on their behalf, the search time starts when the player would have been in a position to search had they not delayed getting to the area.”
So no mooching. If you do, you might find time is rapidly running out and you’re staring a stroke-and-distance penalty in the face!
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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.
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