• What is a Local Rule?
• What is the role of the committee with regards to local rules?
• Can our committee define any local rule they want for their competitions?
• Can we modify the wording of a Model Local Rule to suit the situation at our club?
• Limiting local rules to authorised Model Local Rules
• Permanent v Temporary Local Rules
• Local Rules Creator
• How can we check whether our local rules are valid?
• Terminology to Review/Change
• Examples of Local Rules that are not authorised
• Examples of Local Rules that should be avoided

What is a Local Rule?

A Local Rule is a modification of a Rule or an additional Rule that the Committee adopts for general play or a particular competition. The Committee is responsible for deciding whether to adopt any Local Rules and for making sure they are consistent with the guidelines provided in Section 8(1) (https://www.randa.org/en/rog/committee-procedures/8) of the Official Guide to the Rules of Golf.

Local Rules that are inconsistent with these guidelines are not authorised, and a round played with such a Local Rule in place is not considered to have been played by the Rules of Golf and is not to be handicapped.

If a committee adopts a Local Rule that is inconsistent with the stated purpose of the Model Local Rules, Golf NSW should be consulted as to whether players may submit acceptable scores from that round for handicap purposes.

What is the role of the committee with regards to local rules?

It is important that each competition has a committee in charge of the competition, ideally a single committee which covers all competitions at the club not individual sub-committees in charge of various cohorts of players.

The committee is responsible for a range of things relating to the competition, from setting local rules all the way through to providing rules support for the players.

You can read all about the role of the committee in the Rules of Golf (https://www.randa.org/rog/committee-procedures/1#1a)

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Can our committee define any local rule they want for their competitions?

Committees should limit their local rules to those provided in the Model Local Rule section of the Official Guide to the Rules of Golf (https://www.randa.org/rog/committee-procedures/sections/8).

A Committee must not use a Local Rule to waive or modify a Rule of Golf simply because it might prefer a Rule to be different. Examples of Local Rules that are not authorised include (see end of document for more examples):

• Extending the search time from three minutes to five minutes.
  • Allowing free relief from divots in the fairway.
  • Allowing players in a bunker to rake the bunker and place the ball where they have just raked.
  • Setting a maximum putt limit of 2 putts on a temporary green.

Modifying a Model Local Rule to suit a situation at our club?

A Model Local Rule can either be adopted in its entirety or can serve as an example of how to write a particular type of Local Rule. But if a Committee changes the wording of a Model Local Rule to fit the particular needs of the course or competition, it needs to ensure that the changes are consistent with the stated purpose of Loal Rules in Section 8(1) (https://www.randa.org/en/rog/committee-procedures/8) of the Official Guide to the Rules of Golf.

Where a committee wants to introduce a local rule that is based on a Model Local Rule, the committee may seek assistance in interpreting the Local Rule from Golf NSW (andrew.robb@golfnsw.org.au)

Limiting local rules to authorised Model Local Rules.

Golf NSW recommends that committees limit their local rules to those available in the Model Local Rules section of the Official Guide to the Rules of Golf. This will ensure that:

• Your competitions are being played in accordance with the Rules of Golf, and
• Your competitions can be handicapped, and
• There is consistency among all clubs with regards to local rules that are in place.

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Permanent v Temporary Local Rules

Permanent Local Rules are those that are in play all the time at your club, for example:

• Defining objects that indicate course markings (out of bounds, abnormal course conditions, penalty area etc).
• Defining objects which the committee has determined are integral objects.
• Providing relief from sprinkler heads that are close to the putting green (Model Local Rule F-5).

Temporary Local Rules are those that may be in place for a specific event or for a limited duration, examples include:

• Preferred Lie (Model Local Rule E-3)
• Bunkers that may be out of play due to damage

Permanent local rules are those printed on your scorecard or displayed in a mobile scoring app whereas Temporary Local Rules are those that would be displayed on a local rules board near the first tee or near the proshop so that all players can see them.

Local Rules Creator

The R&A has published a Local Rules Creator which can be found online at https://www.randa.org/local-rules-creator.

This tool enables the committee to reference the Model Local rules and adopt the wording provided. This saves the committee the trouble of having to develop its own wording.

For example, a committee may have a question about the local rules that can be adopted for bunkers on the course. Go to the Local Rules Creator and click on section “C Bunkers” there you will find the model local rules that can be adopted for play at your course.

The Local Rules Creator allows you work through the full list of Model Local rules, select the ones that you wish to apply and from there you can click on the “My Rule File” icon and a new page will open up allowing you to copy the local rules with a simple click of a button ready to publish.

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How can we check whether our local rules are valid?

If you would like Golf NSW to review your current local rules send them through to andrew.robb@golfnsw.org.au. You can send copies of local rules from your scorecard, those on your local rules board or anywhere that you publish your local rules.

Terminology to Review / Change

If your local rules contain old terminology they need to be updated to reflect the changes that were introduced to the Rules of Golf in 2019.

Old Term	New Term
Through the Green	General Area
Water Hazard	Yellow Penalty Area
Lateral  Water Hazard	Red Penalty Area
Compulsory GUR	No Play Zone Abnormal Course Condition
Casual Water	Temporary Water

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Examples of Local Rules that are not authorised

• Preferred Lie in the General Area except when your ball is within 1 club-length of a tree.
• Free relief from tree roots in the General Area.
• If your ball hits a post, rope, metal hoop, course signage etc you can replay the ball if you like for no penalty.
• Balls embedded in the face of bunkers must be dropped and played from the nearest point of relief no nearer the hole within the bunker.
• Allowing players to mark, lift, rake the sand and replace the ball when in a bunker.
• A bunker being serviced by green staff is ground under repair.
• Allowing players to tee off from a forward tee on a particular hole if they can’t carry a shot over a penalty area.
• Allowing players to play a provisional ball for a ball they know is in a Penalty Area but they are not sure if they will be able to play the ball.
• If a distance marker, post, stake etc is on you line of play you get free relief.
• If a ball embeds in the fairway and cannot be found, provided all players in the group agree, the player may take a free drop and play on.
• Any ball that crosses an out of bounds line / stake is out of bounds even if it comes to rest back on the golf course.

Examples of Local Rules that should be avoided

• Preferred Lie but only on the fairway of the hole you are playing.
• Requiring players to mark the ball when taking preferred lie, clubs should not have such a requirement in place.

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