Can the golf club touch the ball at setup?

Question

if your setting up for your second shot in the fairway is the clubface allowed to rest against the golf ball before making your full swing?

Answer 1

Doesnt matter how many times you touch it as long as the ball doesnt move from its resting place then its not a stroke.  However, it would be pretty difficult to touch it and not have the ball move.  But as long as it doesnt move from its position it wouldnt be a penalty.

Answer 2

Absolutely not. This is a stroke, unintentional or not. No birdies on this hole

Answer 3

You cannot touch the ball with your club during the round unless you are making a stroke. It's virtually impossible to "rest the clubhead" against the ball without it moving.

the only time this is not the case is when the ball is tee'd up on the tee box before you make your first stroke on a hole. If you tap the ball by accident and cause it to fall off the tee before making your "stroke" you may replace it without penalty. A "whiff" counts as a stroke and should you knock it off the tee after that, it would be another stroke.

Answer 4

Great question!!!!

There's no problem if your club touches your ball while you are addressing the ball that is in play.  As long as the ball doesn't move (ball is deemed to have "moved" if it leaves its position and comes to rest in a different position."  

Hope this helps and glad you've taken an interest in the rules of golf!!!

Hit'em straight!

John, nice work and thanks for the back up.  This is a really confusing rule and just doesn't seem right to most people unless you've spent years studying the Rules of Golf.

Cheers and glad to see a fellow Rules of Golf fan!

Answer 5

Wallace and Justin are correct. The rule invoved is rule 18-2.

It's kind of a backwards way to say it, but the rule says it's OK to touch the ball with your club while addressing it:

"When a player's ball is in play, if:

(i) the player, his partner or either of their caddies lifts or moves it, touches it purposely (except with a club in the act of addressing it)..."

Edit to clear up some other misconceptions: Decision 18/2 says that a golf ball that  "oscillates" has NOT moved.

If you touch the ball with your club, and the ball wobbles but doesn't leave the spot where it lies, it has not moved.

To add more confusion: If you touch the ball with your club while addressing it, and the ball does actually move, you get a one stroke penalty and you must replace the ball.

Answer 6

That counts as a stroke if you are an honest golfer.

Answer 7

i think it depends. i was playing in a high school tournament a few weeks ago and tapped the ball accidentally while i was addressing it and it fell off a tee. They got out the rulebook and said it didnt count as a stroke because i was addresing the ball. However, i think the USGA rules say otherwise.

Answer 8

No, it would be a penalty and you would lose a stroke.  You cannot, so much as, touch a ball in play with any club, unless you are striking it, without it being a penalty.