Ok so yesterday I overclubbed a bit and blew one over the green. Not by much, maybe 3-4 yards past the back fringe. From the fairway though, I see the group on the next tee, and I see a dude walk over and PICK UP MY BALL. So I have to interrupt my playing partner who's about to hit, so I can run to the green like a maniac, my bag strapped to my back making a huge racket and steam coming out of my ears. The perp sees me coming and replaces my ball, when I get there gives me a weak apology.

This was on a crowded golf course, i.e. THERE'S PEOPLE PLAYING GOLF ALL AROUND YOU. There is a difference between plucking a stray ball you find in the woods and picking up balls that are IN PLAY ON THE GOLF COURSE WHILE OTHERS ARE PLAYING.

I'm ranting because it happens fairly often where I play (New York city, muni golf course). God forbid I hit a stray drive over near an adjacent hole. I always get anxious when this happens, and I hurry to find my ball quickly as possible lest some mindless nitwit spot my ball and pocket it.

It's not just this scenario either. I hate when people in your group drive up to your ball and PICK IT UP to identify it, regardless that it's totally in play and you know where it lies. I like to play it as it lies, and once a person touches the ball for no good reason, the hole is tainted. Yes I am nuts like that. But I am this close to taking a Sharpie to all my golf balls and writing "F U HANDS OFF".

That's all for now.

I had an incident yesterday where I got a bad bounce of a tree and kicked it into the adjacent hole's rough. A player from the group in front of us walks right up to my ball and hits it... I told him that the ball he just hit was mine and all he said was,"No it wasn't", and walked off.... Etiquette doesn't seem to be priority on the golf courses where I usually play.....

Tenementrock,

Which city course did this incident take place? I've had a couple of good drives mysteriously disappear. I'm with you on this one. I get a little anxious if I hit the ball and it is out of sight. I played one course in NJ (I think it's part of crystal springs, gorge something) that was a 27 holer. On one hole where I think three or four of the holes intersect there were about 5 or 6 balls littered about in the fairway. Needless to say none of them were mine because someone probably hit mine before I got there. haha.

We should get together and play sometime.

Best,

Scott

I know the feeling. I hook my drive this morning on a a par five into the first cut of ruff on the hole next to us. As a group plays up the hole my ball disappears. My group aggreed that my ball was played by mistake.

Okay I can allow for that since it was just a practice round and my last hole and did not want a big hassel. I hit my second shot another hook and it goes into the ruff next to the ladies tee. Another guy goes over an picks up my ball, puts it in his pocket and walks away. I look at my partner and can not believe it happened twice on the same hole.

If it was anything but a practice round I would have been very upset, but since the round did not count i just let it go.

I ALWAYS bring up my story when some talks about this topic. Playing in my league, 9th hole, about 410, tough driving hole. Need to be in the left center of hte fairway. I bust one down to the 150, perfect position. I see a group from #1 drive into our fairway, get out, and hit my ball... it's in the center of MY FAIRWAY. I wasn't 100% positive that it was my ball until I got up to it, and no ball to be found in the fairway. I yell over at the guy (turns out English wasn't exactly his native language). He was only about 80 yards away since he topped his 2nd shot. I said "Hey, I think you hit my ball. What kind of ball are you hitting?" He says "It had lettering"...

Yeah, no f'ing kidding it had lettering! I said "They all have f'ing lettering!!!" He gave me my ball back.

My Dad told me a story that happened probably 35/40 years ago. He had a monogram gizmo and put our last name on his ball (I have a unique last name). Guy hits his ball, they walk up to it, and my dad says "hey, you hit my ball". And the guy says "No, I always hit a xxxx"

I'll go one better for you fellas.

So me and my regular playing partner are on the course and we're playing a downhill par 4, with the previous hole being an uphill par 5 now to our right. My buddy is always right, so this time he spanks his drive and it settles in on the rough shared by the two holes. So we drive the cart up and there's a larger, older gentleman parked right next to the only ball in the vicinity. My buddy looks at him and says "is that a Nike?", thinking it was most likely his ball.

The guy looks back at him and in a slow southern drawl (rare, since we were in CT) says "that's my ball". Doesn't answer if it's a Nike, doesn't give my partner the impression that he's even looked at the ball, or that he would let anyone near it to confirm ownership. So my buddy repeats himself, and the guy retorts "yeah, it's a Nike....but that's my ball". Clearly it wasn't, but this guy wasn't lettin go, so we moved on, but we still to this day make jokes about that.

Amazing some of the characters you run into on the golf course. I'm with you on the touch my ball and the hole is tainted rule. Screws with my head when I know I'm not playing my ball exactly as it rested (usually screws up my next shot too).

I've had a few of my errant balls taken but the worst has to be at this one course in Cali (forget which one, a muni in the bay area). My hole is a dog right and the adjascent fairway is a dog left going the other way. I drive the ball into the left rough between the holes. A guy in another group on the opposing hole over shoots the fairway and lands near me. We both happen to be playing NXT Tours. I know for a fact I was playing a brand new number 2. I see him standing by where I hit and picking up one ball examining it, then another, one of them had to be mine. I hurry over to him because I am already fumed that he touched my ball. When I get there I said what are you playing? He tells me NXT Tour and I watch him play his next shot. Lo and behold the NXT Tour he leaves for me is a number 3 and is shredded to pieces! By the time I noticed he was halfway down his fairway toward his hole... Some people... gotta tell ya, a part of me wanted to pull out my 3 wood and zing his ball into his butt.

What muni course did you play at? I just moved to NY half a year ago (no car) so was probably going to try Van Cordlandt some time this season.