Golf Rules: The top 5 issues the USGA still needs to fix

ABU DHABI, UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - JANUARY 14: (L-R) Brooks Koepka of the United States and Henrik Stenson of Sweden "go back to school with HSBC to get to grip with the new rules for 2019" during a launch event ahead of the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship at the Abu Dhabi Golf Club on January 14, 2019 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. (Photo by Andrew Redington/Getty Images) /

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AGADIR, MOROCCO – MARCH 16: The ball of Alejandro Canizares of Spain is stuck by a divot on the 18th hole during the final round of the Trophee Hassan II Golf at Golf du Palais Royal on March 16, 2014 in Agadir, Morocco. (Photo by Stuart Franklin/Getty Images) /

This was the one rule many were surprised the USGA didn’t address. We’ve all been there; a great drive has you thinking par or maybe even birdie. You stride up the fairway, basking in the adulation of your friends and – BAM! Your ball is resting two inches below the surface of the earth in a divot that looks like someone took an ice cream scooper to the turf.

Pros have trouble with this shot. A mid-handicapper might as well flip a coin on whether or not his next shot stays on the course.

Purists will tell you this is one of the delightful paradoxes of golf – a great shot can turn out badly and a poor strike can end up right next to the hole.

Hogwash.

Golf is a game. When you play a game well – like piping a drive down the middle – you should be rewarded. Usually, that means a fluffy lie in the short stuff. It most certainly doesn’t mean finding your ball in a zoysia taco shell.

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