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Upcoming Events

Live USGA Webcasts - Online All Year
Topics for Golfers and Superintendents
Handicap Seminar
Feb 17
La Jolla Country Club, La Jolla, Calif.
Handicap Seminar
Feb 23
Northwood Club, Dallas, Texas
Handicap Seminar
Mar 10
Moon Valley Country Club, Phoenix, Ariz.

Our Experts Explain:

The Rules of Golf

Our Experts Explain the Rules of Golf USGA rules experts provide insight and explanations on rules decisions and interpretations. The experts will also address commonly asked rules questions.

Handicapping

The USGA Handicap System™ enables golfers of all skill levels to compete on an equitable basis. USGA experts will help explain "The USGA Handicap System" manual – the USGA's handicapping equivalent of "The Rules of Golf" and address commonly asked questions. This section of the site will also features a Course Handicap™ calculator that allows players to convert their Handicap Index to the Course Handicap for any course that has been properly rated.

Equipment

The USGA tests balls, clubs, and other equipment for conformity to the Rules of Golf. Here, the Research and Test Center staff explains how golf equipment is tested, discusses its research about why and how golf equipment works the way it does and describes the USGA’s role in establishing equipment standards for the game of golf.

Rule of the Day

20-3d/3 Ball in Rough Moves Downward When Addressed; Ball Will Not Remain at Rest When Replaced
Q:

A player's ball is sitting up in the rough about three inches above the ground. He addresses the ball. It moves downward about two inches and comes to rest at Point X. The player attempts to replace the ball as required by Rule 18-2b, but the ball falls downward to Point X. Under Rule 20-3d, he again attempts to replace the ball, with the same result. The player must now place the ball at the nearest spot not nearer the hole where it can be placed at rest -- Rule 20-3d.

If the nearest spot where the ball will remain at rest is Point X, must the player place the ball there, even though that point is vertically below the original lie?

Yes.

See the Previous Rule of the Day

Today in Golf History

Feb 08, 2010

2004 Michelle Wie becomes youngest ever selected for Curtis Cup team

Michelle Wie, 14, of Honolulu, Hawaii, became the youngest ever selected for a USA Curtis Cup team. Laura Baugh was 16 when she was named to the 1972 team. The previous year, Wie became the youngest winner of an "adult" USGA championship when she captured the 2003 U.S. Women's Amateur Public Links. At the age of 10, Wie became the youngest to ever qualify for a USGA women's amateur competition (WAPL). Before entering high school, Wie had competed in three men's events on the PGA Tour and made the 36-hole cut at the 2003 Women's Open.

Visit the USGA Museum to learn more about the history of golf.