Ask the Ref: What's the penalty for mis-counting?

In match play, I holed out and told my opponent I had scored a six. My opponent picked up her ball as she had already played six shots. However, I then realised that I had actually scored a seven and immediately told my opponent. What is the ruling?

One of the essential components of match play is knowing the number of strokes taken by yourself and your opponent and the status of the match at any point in time, as this can affect the players tactics for playing the hole or strategy for the match.

Rule 3.2d states that when asked for the number of strokes taken, or when giving that information without being asked the player must give the right number of strokes taken. The player will receive the loss of hole penalty if they give the opponent the wrong number of strokes taken, unless they correct that mistake in time.

It is astonishing how frequently players either miscount their strokes or forget to include a penalty that has been incurred.

During play of the hole, the player must give the right number of strokes before the opponent makes another or stroke or takes a similar action.

In this example, as a result of the information given, the opponent picked up their ball believing they had lost the hole (whereas the opponent had the opportunity to halve the hole). If the player had corrected their mistake before their opponent picked up their ball, there would have been no penalty. The player receives the General Penalty of Loss of Hole.

By Sheila Waltham

About the author

Sheila Waltham has been a qualified rules official for over 15 years and joined the England Golf Tournament Panel of Referees in 2019. A keen golfer since 1995, Sheila’s interest in the Rules was born out of the realisation that a lot of the information she received as a novice golfer was incorrect. So, she took matters into her own hands!

Become a whizz on the rules. Check out our previous Ask the Ref features, like this one: What happens if my golf ball ends up in a puddle?