I watched a program on the Golf Channel last night about the top 10 memorable rulings in the history of golf. Some included marking a scorecard wrong at the Masters, Anika playing out of turn, spectators moving a boulder for Tiger, etc.

My question is, what do you think have been the most memorable rulings in disc golf? I am not looking for rules changes but actually rulings called during a round.

Get ready for the avalanche.

I'd wager there are 100x more flat-out wrong rulings (or uncalled infractions) during a tournament round of disc golf than ball golf.

Remember the foursome that played the course out of order, and their ruling on that was if they didn't tell anyone they didn't have to take the penalty?

I remember a *then* PDGA BOD member stating that since the obstacle between the lie and the hole was on the ground and not in the air, it wasn't an obstacle to the flight of the disc and therefore could be moved. :)

just for the record, that was not me :)

i had a guy whine and moan when i called him on that particular rule... he replied that moving the branch on the ground in front of him was "in the spirit of the game".

I am remember a current PDGA BOD member, who wasn't one at the time, making the "missed your turn to start the round" call at the last round of an Am Worlds. I seconded the call. The late guy in question ended up taking a 7 (after playing a provisional where he deuced) and missed the cut by a single stroke.

That was memorable.

Get ready for the avalanche.

I'd wager there are 100x more flat-out wrong rulings (or uncalled infractions) during a tournament round of disc golf than ball golf.



Very true...maybe I should have posed the question, "What are the most memorable rules infractions that did not get called?"

The list could be endless. :D

A violation at the 2005 pro worlds is pretty memorable around this area.

For those that haven't heard, a competitor broke branches in front of their lie in order to get a better look at the basket. Their excuse was that the branches were not there when they had practiced the hole and could be moved/broken.

That was pretty memorable...I mean hilarious. :D

A violation at the 2005 pro worlds is pretty memorable around this area.

For those that haven't heard, a competitor broke branches in front of their lie in order to get a better look at the basket. Their excuse was that the branches were not there when they had practiced the hole and could be moved/broken.

That was pretty memorable...I mean hilarious. :D


So the big question is....was it called and was the competitor penalized? :)

I am pretty sure that it was called by one of the moderators on this board and that they were penalized accordingly.

Shows how memory can play tricks on you. I remember the BoD member saying, "Why don't we ask the TD at the end of the round," which to me seems like an eminently reasonable way to resolve any rules dispute being raised by someone who does not have a copy of the rules.

I am pretty sure that it was called by one of the moderators on this board and that they were penalized accordingly.



I am pretty sure that neither Alan, Doot or I played in Pro Worlds 2005 so I think I know which moderator that was. :D

I read this in on another thread some time ago.

One memorable non-ruling was when a touring pro missed a putt and blamed it on a tall mound of medium sized rocks. Someone oviously built the mound of rocks by hand. He kicked the rocks in anger while screaming foul language. The rocks ended up rolling down a hill towards another group of golfers waiting to tee off.

804.05 Disqualification and Suspension
A. A player shall be disqualified by the director for meeting any of the necessary conditions of disqualification as set forth in the rules, or for any of the following:
(1) Unsportsmanlike conduct, such as; <u>loud cursing, throwing things in anger (other than discs in play), or overt rudeness to anyone present</u>

(2) <u>Willful and overt destruction or abuse of</u> plant life, course hardware, or any other <u>property considered part of the disc golf course or the park.</u>

I read this in on another thread some time ago.

One memorable non-ruling was when a touring pro missed a putt and blamed it on a tall mound of medium sized rocks. Someone oviously built the mound of rocks by hand. He kicked the rocks in anger while screaming foul language. The rocks ended up rolling down a hill towards another group of golfers waiting to tee off.

804.05 Disqualification and Suspension
A. A player shall be disqualified by the director for meeting any of the necessary conditions of disqualification as set forth in the rules, or for any of the following:
(1) Unsportsmanlike conduct, such as; <u>loud cursing, throwing things in anger (other than discs in play), or overt rudeness to anyone present</u>

(2) <u>Willful and overt destruction or abuse of</u> plant life, course hardware, or any other <u>property considered part of the disc golf course or the park.</u>



Mike , U and I must share a brain... That was the 1st thing that came to mind when I saw this thread....

There was a little something a couple of weeks back when the " champ " was running a little late... But I was not there , and I dont know , so I will not elaborate... :D

I have been warned for :

1. Being too supportive
2. Being too positive
3. Not talking during a round

i'm warning you for being a 5 time 3rd place finisher. that is really really really bad for the game :)

HAHA!

Shows how memory can play tricks on you. I remember the BoD member saying, "Why don't we ask the TD at the end of the round," which to me seems like an eminently reasonable way to resolve any rules dispute being raised by someone who does not have a copy of the rules.



I had a copy of the rules, and I'm pretty sure a few others nearby did as well. I agree the TD has to uphold the call in the end or it does not stand.

The memory does play tricks because I don't remember the former BOD member getting involved until after the round. At least I didn't get involved with him until after the round and was rather curtly dismissed.

I have been warned for :

1. Being too supportive
2. Being too positive
3. Not talking during a round



You must have been stomping a mud hole into their arses....
That sounds like poor sportsmanship to me..

I have been warned for :

1. Being too supportive
2. Being too positive
3. Not talking during a round



1997 PDGA supertour event -tied for the lead- On the last hole, i threw a roller that hit the cold ground and an even colder tree at the same time splitting the disc in half. One half lay at the base of the tree, the other half about 12 feet up in the live oak tree's branches. The 1996 heart of texas, light blue Cyclone was split so closely in half that we had to call the TD over to make the decision as to which half was larger. Unfortunately for me, the ruling was for the half that was more than 2m high. I lost by one to a certain Grider, big brother Mikey Grider!

You and Rhett work that out. I'll go with whatever version you two can agree on. I thought the TD ruled that the plastic hose was not an obstacle because it was not part of the course. But I did not stick around very long because I didn't want to have to fight my way out of the parking lot. :D
I never really knew whether the player was penalized or not.

This is my most memorable ruling and it's on the same rule. The official spotting at the Major strokes a player for picking up and moving a big detached branch blocking his upshot. The official shows the player the rule. The player plays tournaments the official runs, so he knows the guy is an official. On the next tee his foursome agrees not to impose the penalty.

When the official comes in at the end of the day, he finds out that the player did not take his stroke penalty. He tells the TD. The TD finally decides it is no penalty because the rule is not all that clear anyway. I guess if a rule is not all that clear, the group consensus outweighs a call by the certified official? Yeah, if your dad is on the BoD! :o

I thought the TD ruled that the plastic hose was not an obstacle because it was not part of the course.


No, the TD stated that he didn't remember that rule being in his admittedly 3 versions out of date rule book, and in true disc golf fashion decided that he didn't want to [censored] over the offending player so he overturned the call, instead choosing to [censored] over the guy who bothered to make the call.

The plastic hose had been there the whole week prior to and at least for the whole week of competition. It might still be there. And the large diameter hose was absolutely an obstacle, otherwise the offending player wouldn't have bothered moving it out of his way.

wow, this thread is showing real potential! :cool:

I'd like to hear about memorable calls that were upheld, like the "late to start" one. :)

Non-calls, over-turned correct calls, and "yelling until its un-called" are so commonplace that everybody's seen lots of that in person. But a valid rules call that is made and upheld and makes a difference in the tournament, well that is so rare it's almost mythology!

i saw a current BoD Member (acting as Marshall, if memory serves) uphold a late to start call made by the card and already upheld by the course TD. i thought at the time, and still do, that it was handled by the rules, with full consideration, patience and understanding.

'04 Worlds- player foot faults on his tee shot, called and seconded. An official was walking with the group- ruled it as a warning only (1st offense), but did not have the player rethrow, played his 1st/only drive. We all found out about it after the round when questions started with lots of players and the TD. This was on the lead card with an official watching and giving the ruling.

I'd like to hear about memorable calls that were upheld, like the "late to start" one. :)

Non-calls, over-turned correct calls, and "yelling until its un-called" are so commonplace that everybody's seen lots of that in person. But a valid rules call that is made and upheld and makes a difference in the tournament, well that is so rare it's almost mythology!



Nevvvver heard of it. ;) /msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif :D

I had a foot fault violation called, and seconded by my group at the 2003 SoCal Championships. I had assumed the teebox continued to the edge of the sidewalk, but I was about 3 feet past the official teebox. My teeshot was terrible, but 2 others in my group decided that since I had foot faulted, I had to re-tee. I parked the 2nd drive and got a birdie. The fourth person in our group, the card leader, and eventual winner was none too pleased. I beat him by two strokes that round.

2006 Tulsa Worlds - Hole 2 McClure park 230ft with a creek on the right.

Shawn Sinclair was the course Marshall, he was standing across the creek watching a group tee off...dude throws and aces the hole, while high fives are being made Shawn calls the dude for a foot fault. The dude shamefully has to re-throw the hole and luckily gets his 4.

BRUTAL!!!!!!

Gary Duke was on my card and will remember this one at an Okie Open a few years back:
I clearly heard LOUD chains on my blind drive at Hunter DGC and we asked the other nearby cards if my drive was 'in'...and they said, "Yes!" We get up there and it wasn't...WTF! :mad:/msgboard/images/graemlins/smirk.gif

DOH!!! Those bastards were yanking your chain (no pun intended) :D

STILL wondering to this day...

Was Mitchell on one of those cards? :D

Highly likely!! :eek:

There it is, case solved. :D

I've seen it before, while a cruel joke, its still funny. :D

You just can't trust those OMBs

I aced a made up a hole the other day in a ace pool throw off. As soon as I released the disc everyone went foot fault. I looked down and saw I was like 1 foot and a half past the line.

No ace money for me - lol

Rhett,
The intersting thing about that situation at Am worlds, was the end result. The tournament heads eventually allowed the player to play in the semi finals even though he missed the cut, but it did not count, it was just for fun. Which I thought was not fair to the players who actually made the cut to have someone with controversy playing in thier group....

Also, after the round in question at Am Worlds that day, there was alot of unsportsman like conduct (mainly loud foul language) going on in reaction to the call, and was witnessed by several players and local residents who just happened to be there. Not a great way to show off the sport,, :confused:
I have to say, I was not impressed, but hey we are only human, and some times tempers flare in tight situations. The thing that gets me, is that an Am tournament is for fun and prizes. Some people can take this game too seriously :D

I saw a Marshal call a courtesy violation at the Memorial this year. A player had just thrown OB on Tournament Hole 7 at Vista (The one along/across the canal towards Dukes). He banged his stool on the metal railing of the bridge as he walked across. Right as he did that, a guy was putting nearby. A Marshal saw it, called it and wrote the violation on the player's card. The player was not happy but handled the whole thing well enough and actually put together a decent round if I remember correctly.

My whole card was stroked for playing a made up alternate hole out of order at a PDGA tournament in OHIO last year. There was no marking on the course whatsoever indicating when to play the alternates and the scorecard indicated that the holes would be played after hole 18. We all attended the players meeting and this detail was glanced over since most of the 'local' players already knew when to play these holes. We decided to follow the scorecard (There was nobody at tournament central to ask since the TD was playing the tournament).

Immediatelly following the round our group talked with the TD explaining what happened and he agreed that the course was not sufficiently marked and we would not be stroked. I got back from lunch to find that he changed his mind and decided to give each of us 4 penalty strokes. Needless to say, I no longer attend events run by this TD...

My friend Daymon Pugh, during one of his many tantrums, kicked his bag after missing a putt on the side of a hill. Not a hard kick, but enough to knock the bag on it's side. Every single disc in his bag rolled out he was left with 18 or so discs that were anywhere from 30-120ft away. He was not stroked...

At the Fifth Shenandoah Shag (2005), my pal Aaron was playing in Rec (his very first tournament). He'd only been playing at all for about 6 weeks &amp; was eager to compete &amp; learn. He had an excellent opportunity to do so, since the Shag mixes up divisions in round one, and he got to play with a couple of pros. Well, one pro (we won't name names, but you know who you are, sucka) wasn't playing too well &amp; was getting pi$$ed. He called Aaron for a practice throw for a 2-foot mini toss in the direction of a target (his bag). Nobody would second it, so he berated Aaron, who knew not the rules very well, into seconding his own bogus penalty. Aaron ended up losing by 1.

Does a practice throw need a second?
I thought it went more like: "You threw your disc. That's 1 stroke"

803.01B. Practice Throws. A player who throws a practice throw or an extra throw with any disc any time after the start of his or her round and prior to his or her finishing the last hole of the round (except for throws that must be re-thrown in accordance with the rules, provisional throws made pursuant to 803.01 C and 803.01 D (3), or throws during a suspension or postponement of play) shall receive one penalty throw. The practice throw or extra throw must be observed by any two players or an official.

Oh crazy, thanks.

You should have argued with him. 2 is all that is allowed.


My whole card was stroked for playing a made up alternate hole out of order at a PDGA tournament in OHIO last year. There was no marking on the course whatsoever indicating when to play the alternates and the scorecard indicated that the holes would be played after hole 18. We all attended the players meeting and this detail was glanced over since most of the 'local' players already knew when to play these holes. We decided to follow the scorecard (There was nobody at tournament central to ask since the TD was playing the tournament).

Immediatelly following the round our group talked with the TD explaining what happened and he agreed that the course was not sufficiently marked and we would not be stroked. I got back from lunch to find that he changed his mind and decided to give each of us 4 penalty strokes. Needless to say, I no longer attend events run by this TD...

You should have argued with him. 2 is all that is allowed.


The TD probably doubled him up with 2 + 2 for course misplay and incorrect scorecard.

You should have argued with him. 2 is all that is allowed.


The TD probably doubled him up with 2 + 2 for course misplay and incorrect scorecard.



It wouldnt be an incorrect scorecard because they went to the TD first and he was NOT going to stroke them...so at that point they turned in a CORRECT card...

He then changed his ruling....so the penalty would only be 2.. :p

You should have argued with him. 2 is all that is allowed.


The TD probably doubled him up with 2 + 2 for course misplay and incorrect scorecard.



It wouldnt be an incorrect scorecard because they went to the TD first and he was NOT going to stroke them...so at that point they turned in a CORRECT card...

He then changed his ruling....so the penalty would only be 2.. :p


Good point. I forgot that part of the story and remembered the "double dipping" I've heard of from other events.

I guess it's not double-dipping since that's how ball golf does it. The golfer that bends the twig and doesn't stroke himself and then gets turned in by a TV viewer doesn't get DQ'd for bending the twig. He gets DQ'd for an incorrect card.

My friend Daymon Pugh, during one of his many tantrums, kicked his bag after missing a putt on the side of a hill. Not a hard kick, but enough to knock the bag on it's side. Every single disc in his bag rolled out he was left with 18 or so discs that were anywhere from 30-120ft away. He was not stroked...

Damon did that at the MDGO at Stoney back in 2001. Then he started yelling at me for talking while he was throwing 150 feet away. Since I was there merely as "the person who brings homemade chocolate chip cookies for the volunteers" there was not much Damon could do about me talking while he was throwing 150 feet away, except maybe ask me to shut up, which did not occur to him since he could not hear me from that far away anyway. :D That was also the year where after the two minute warning he took a practice throw [because the first one is only a warning if anyone calls it] and beaned one of my kids.

These are some great examples of things that have happened, but unfortunately, they are not examples of rulings.... I am not saying that the examples don't belong here, I just pointing out that there have been many examples of situations that should have involved a ruling, but alas there was not one. :confused:

I have said before that there are some players out there that play the game way to seriously, but at the same time ignore the rules, and we had had several examples here to prove that. :p

After reading this thread, my wish would be that the rest of us that play this game by the rules, and with patience and good sportsmanship, would start considering giving the appropriate penalties to players who deserve them. (but at the same time being careful not to stoop to that level) :D

If I saw 18 discs roll down a hill after the owner of the bag kicked it in a fit of rage, I would argue for at least a two stroke penalty (801.01 Courtesy rule, and 803.01 B or 804.02 A (2). Inadvertent type practice throw). I read that no penalty was given, but I think we should all consider enforcing the rules (within reason) on a regular basis, and start teaching the uncourteous/angry types a lesson ;)

Just ask yourself how many times you have put up with that type of a crummy attitude during a tournament and later secretly added in your head the additional strokes you took during the event...... LOL, It makes you fell sick inside sometimes :eek: Makes me think of a famous quote:

" I am mad as %&amp;*#, and I am not going to take it anymore"

i sneezed one time just as someone in my group was teeing off,his shot went OB,i said that i was sorry but i couldn't help it.....he demanded a re-tee,there was no TD to be found at the time(we gave him one and he still went OB),this guy went crazy on me he told me the he was going to kick my a** for doing that to him everybody else in the group heard him say that to me....after the tourament was over he still wanted to harm me....but mr smith and mr wession changed his mind.....end of story

i sneezed one time just as someone in my group was teeing off,his shot went OB,i said that i was sorry but i couldn't help it.....he demanded a re-tee,there was no TD to be found at the time(we gave him one and he still went OB),this guy went crazy on me he told me the he was going to kick my a** for doing that to him everybody else in the group heard him say that to me....after the tourament was over he still wanted to harm me....but mr smith and mr wession changed his mind.....what is the ruling on that?

Are you saying you had to pull your fire arm to stop him from trying?

As for a ruling, I think we should be standing up against violent behavior and at least request the TD DQ the offending player. I myself had a long-time friend get mad when I caught him cheating on his score. He ran at me and tried to tackle me, pushing me up against a tree. The rest of the group and me let it go with a warning, and the only thing that happened was his score was corrected on the card...The attack and the cheating ruined the mood of the group for the remaining 5 holes, and we had no idea how many times we had been pencil whipped on past holes. We ended up in a tie in my division....

A sponsored AM (Gateway-Chris Kilgus-1/2 of the new National Collegiate doubles champions) was caught pencil whipping at a tournament I played in recently in March. When confronted, he decided to change the score he put on the card. A little later in the round, the other three of us caught that he changed it back to the lower score. He was reported by myself and others. The TD (Ed Garris) told us we were probably wrong, and that the person in question was a good person, and we shouldn't believe he would do that. Nothing else was done. He was caught pencil whipping again in two other rounds by his fellow players. What should the TD have done in this case when we originally reported him?

Get the signatures needed to put him on probation for a while if you could.

Why would you cheat in such a PURE game

Sux - Craig and all of the rest of us this has happened to ..

and always make sure that pencil doesn't have an eraser on it :o

I beat him by 8 strokes anyway, and the mental telepathy bad juju I was sending him was working well the second day! I was more concerned with the fact the TD dissed us, and that the player in question was sponsored!

Name names.

You've been pm'd

Since you aren't talking in generalizations about an issue, but about an individual that did a specific thing, I always recommend naming names here in public instead of alluding to nefarious deeds with obscure comments.

That's because when you say "this guy was cheating, and here's a hint as to who he is", it casts doubt on a bunch of people, all except one of which is innocent of your allegations. As it is now, every Gateway Am is suspect from your statement. If we bother to look up what tournament you just played, then every Gateway Am at that tournament is suspect.

Just name names here in public and get it over with. That's all.

Done.

One memorable non-ruling was when a touring pro missed a putt and blamed it on a tall mound of medium sized rocks. Someone oviously built the mound of rocks by hand. He kicked the rocks in anger while screaming foul language. The rocks ended up rolling down a hill towards another group of golfers waiting to tee off.

804.05 Disqualification and Suspension
A. A player shall be disqualified by the director for meeting any of the necessary conditions of disqualification as set forth in the rules, or for any of the following:
(1) Unsportsmanlike conduct, such as; <u>loud cursing, throwing things in anger (other than discs in play), or overt rudeness to anyone present</u>

(2) <u>Willful and overt destruction or abuse of</u> plant life, course hardware, or any other <u>property considered part of the disc golf course or the park.</u>



All I can say about that is after questionable behavior in two consecutive Pro Worlds, there had better be some Masters on the top card this year in Highbridge willing to make these calls. And a Marshall following along with the group isn't a bad idea either.

Hell, all there needs to be is a spectator with a video cam. Then we can all be treated to a highlight reel.