Q. A player hits his first tee shot into the woods and then proceeds without comment to hit another tee shot which lands in the fairway. While walking to his second shot he notices that his first shot had bounced off a tree and could be played from the rough. Is the player allowed to play his original tee shot?
- Yes
- No
A. B
According to Rule 27, if the player does not inform his playing partners that the ball is a provisional it is considered to be the ball in play and the original ball in considered lost.
The player shall inform his opponent in match play or his marker or a fellow-competitor in stroke play that he intends to play a provisional ball, and he shall play it before he or his partner goes forward to search for the original ball.
USGA Rule 27-2
"If he fails to do so and plays another ball, such ball is not a provisional ball and becomes the ball in play under penalty of stroke and distance (Rule 27-1); the original ball is deemed to be lost."
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