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You may have seen some talk around social media and sports sites like ours about golfers on both the PGA and LPGA Tour who are doing something called “backstopping” that is well within the rules, but it’s a practice that has experts debating whether it’s the right thing to do.
If so, and if you’ve wondered what was up with all this “backstopping” talk, don’t be alarmed. As always, we’re here to help with a breakdown of the what’s going on.
Backstopping? What?
Let’s use an example that came up on Friday at the Honda LPGA Thailand: Ariya Jutanugarn hit a chip that landed a few feet near the hole on No. 18. Her playing partner, Amy Olson, indicated to Jutanugarn that she should NOT mark her ball. Then, Olson stepped back and chipped a ball that hit Jutanugarn’s, giving her a “backstop” so that Olson’s ball didn’t roll farther.
The two fist-bumped as they walked up and both made birdie putts.
Whaaaat? This is legal?
Yes and no.
What does that mean?
As Golf.com pointed out, there’s a rule against conspiring to leave a ball unmarked for the purposes of helping another player:
Rule 15.3a in the Rules of Golf says that in stroke play, “If two or more players agree to leave a ball in place to help any player, and that player then makes a stroke with the helping ball left in place, each player who made the agreement gets the general penalty (two penalty strokes).”
Would Olson and Jutanugarn be penalized for what they did?
That’s the question: Jutanugarn was going to mark when Olson waved her off. So perhaps that’s not seen as an “agreement” and thereby makes it legal?
But what’s the advantage to the player who’s ball got hit and moved?
He or she can move the ball back to its original spot without penalty. It’s kind of brilliant for both parties when you think about it.
Has this happened before?
Yes. Here’s some discussion from January when Andrew Putnam didn’t mark his ball and Matt Kuchar took a shot from a nearby bunker:
This is a clip from last June that stirred up controversy in which PGA Tour pro Jimmy Walker weighed in:
Luke Donald responded logically:
What’s the problem with helping your playing partner a little if it’s advantageous for you both?
Because it goes against the spirit of “protecting the field” at a tournament. In other words, it’s unfair to all the other golfers playing — if “backstopping” ends up helping one player, it could cost someone else in the field prize money or even a title. This happened in 2017 with this Tony Finau bunker shot at the Safeway Open:
