My ball has landed on the tee for a different hole!
You’ve found your ball and it’s on a tee box. What do the rules dictate you must do? Allow our expert to help
To tee or not to tee? That is indeed the question. What happens if a ball lands on an nearby green or a nearby tee? You might think this poser provides the same answer, but read on and be amazed!
Golf tee box rules: Ball lands on wrong green or another tee
Let’s start with the green. If your ball ends up on any putting surface other than the hole to which you’re playing then you are on a wrong green. I’ve written loads about wrong greens, which you can read here.
Did you know a wrong green is part of the general area? And so is any other teeing location apart from the teeing area you must play in starting a hole.
Tenuous link, I know. But here’s where there is a difference. While you are compelled under the rules to take relief from a wrong green (unless a Local Rule is in place denying relief from stance interference), that’s not the case if you find yourself on another teeing area.
It might drive your greenkeepers crazy but in this situation you play it as it lies and that’s applicable to all other teeing locations, whether it’s an adjacent hole or a different tee box on the same hole you’re playing.
Could clubs bring in a Local Rule to prevent this? I haven’t seen anything in the Model Local Rules that specifically covers it – I can’t imagine it comes up all that often – but I suppose it would be possible for a committee to declare any other teeing locations, other than the one for the hole you are playing, as No Play Zones. That would force players to take relief.
I imagine, though, that could get quite tricky in some cases. When taking relief from a No Play Zone, you need to find the nearest point of complete relief. You might end up with a worse lie.
One final thing to remember, hitting a ball from an adjacent tee is different to starting a hole and playing from the wrong tee markers.
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 these golf tee box rules? What did you do when you were in this situation? Let us know by leaving a comment on X.
Steve Carroll
A journalist for 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 currently floats at around 11.
Steve plays at Close House, in Newcastle, and York GC, where he is a member of the club's matches and competitions committee and referees the annual 36-hole scratch York Rose Bowl.
Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NTCJ exams at Darlington College of Technology.
What's in Steve's bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; Caley 01T irons 4-PW; TaylorMade Hi-Toe wedges, Ping ChipR, Sik Putter.
