I saw Tiger Woods today declare his lie to be unplayable, took a 1-stroke penalty, got the lie on flat ground, and played out. In ball golf you can call it unplayable any time you want, which means any time you think it would take more strokes to get out than the one penalty stroke you can just say "unplayable lie" and take the stroke and get an easy lie.

In stick golf a ball inside a dense bush is unplayable. What about disc golf? Are there times that you can just decide that you don't like the lie, for any reason you want or for no reason?

Say you miss the fairway and are deep in the shule and know it will take 2 or 3 strokes just to get into the fairway. Why can't you just call it an unplayable lie, take the stroke, and mark your lie in the fairway and hole out like Tiger did? Lots of times this can save you a stroke. I have had times it took me 3 strokes to get out of the woods. Calling "unplayable lie" would get me out in one stroke!

You can. Although some people disagree with the concept. I wonder if they would argue Woods should have had to hit the ball from the bush as well.

1 penalty throw for anywhere within 5 meters, no nearer the basket.
2 for anywhere beyond that, no nearer the basket.

So we can just use the "unsafe lie" rule even if it's actually safe. You can just say it's not safe "I might stub my toe" kind of thing..........

Ok never mind

That's correct. Unsafe is in the eye of the player alone.

I think my score is unsafe from that lie.

hence the pending changing of the name of the rule to 'undesirable lie'

otherwise calling it 'unplayable' may feel like a lie

This is the rule that derailed the major rules rewrite for 2005. It was not so much the change from unplayable lie to undesirable lie that derailed the process as much as it was the undesirable lie one member of the rules committee tried to slip by the board!

I saw Tiger Woods today declare his lie to be unplayable, took a 1-stroke penalty, got the lie on flat ground, and played out. In ball golf you can call it unplayable any time you want, which means any time you think it would take more strokes to get out than the one penalty stroke you can just say "unplayable lie" and take the stroke and get an easy lie.

Are they playing that course with the really deep pot bunkers? I've always wondered why more players did not use this rule to get out of some of those bunkers. I thought maybe they made those bunkers an exception to the application of the rule.

This is the rule that derailed the major rules rewrite for 2005. It was not so much the change from unplayable lie to undesirable lie that derailed the process as much as it was the undesirable lie one member of the rules committee tried to slip by the board!



what undesirable lie did this person attempt to slip by the board and why did it derail the rules re-write for 2005?

also, how unbiased of a witness are you regarding this matter?

From the golf web site:

BALL UNPLAYABLE

If you believe your ball is unplayable outside a water hazard (and you are the sole judge), you may under penalty of one stroke, (a) drop within two club-lengths of where the ball lies not nearer the hole, (b) drop any distance behind the point where the ball lay keeping a straight line between the hole, the point where the ball lay and the spot on which the ball is dropped, or (c) replay the shot. If your ball is in a bunker you may proceed under (a), (b) and (c). However, if you elect to proceed under (a) or (b) you must drop in the bunker.

That means you can't drop outside the bunker. Is also means you can play from the previous lie but with a penalty stroke.

So if I shank into the woods so deep it takes 3 strokes to get back out, I just take one stroke penalty and trow from the previous lie.

And that is assuming that you find the disc first.

You can't declare it undesirable/unplayable/whatever if you can't find it.

How about this scenario. I make a really bad throw that goes 200 feet into dense woods and jungle. I tell everybody, "I'm not going to go look for that thing, I know it's lost, I'll just rethrow from here."

So, I take one penalty stroke for undesirable lie and another stroke for the lost disc, and throw from the same lie. Is that it?

It saved the 5 strokes it would take to get out and 3 minutes of 4 people rummaging looking around and it's still lost anyway.

We just had this scenario at the Mid-Nationals. Player tees off and shanks it way into the woods. Disgusted, player retees. The Scorekeeper, Marshall and PDGA Competition Director all agree player accepted the 2-shot unplayable lie penalty by default for playing his next shot no closer to the hole than his lie. It could be argued that no one knew exactly where the shot was, but it was clear the tee was farther from the pin than wherever it was.

Why not just declare it a lost disc?

803.10.A. A disc shall be declared lost if the player cannot locate it within three minutes after arriving at the spot where it was last seen by the group or an official. Two players or an official must note when the timing of three minutes begins. All players of the group must, upon request, assist in searching for the disc for the full three minutes before the disc is declared lost. The disc is considered lost immediately upon the expiration of the three minute time limit.
803.10.B. A player whose disc is declared lost, shall receive one penalty throw. The approximate lie for the player's next shot shall be marked in-bounds nearest the spot where the disc was last seen, as agreed to by a majority of the group or an official.

Mull around for three minutes, not requesting help, and play with one stroke penalty not two.

Mull around for three minutes, not requesting help, and play with one stroke penalty not two.




Bacause you still might not get out of where your lost disc was last seen. Players in the group can help find your disc without your request and in fact might zealously try to help find it. In this case, the player forced the call by reteeing whether that was his best play or not.

Here's an interesting way to save throws. Let's say you yank one into an OB creek in the middle of the woods. Remember that you can rethrow from your original lie which is probably more open than where your disc went OB. It just might save a shot or two on occasion.