Rules question · Rule 14.1c · Hard
Lifted my ball because it interfered and cleaned it: is there a penalty?
Your ball lies on the fairway and interferes with another player’s stroke. You mark it, lift it and wipe it on your towel. What is the ruling?
Answer
One penalty stroke
You must not clean a ball you lift because it interferes with another player’s play. The same applies when you lift it to see if it is damaged. If you clean it anyway, you get one penalty stroke and replace it. On the putting green, by contrast, you may always clean your ball.
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