What the Rules Say When a Golf Ball Won't Stay Put

Two common situations trip up golfers trying to follow the letter of the Rules: a ball that won't sit still once it's replaced, and a ball that moves on its own after play has already paused for a ruling. Both have specific, if occasionally unforgiving, answers in the rulebook.

What happens if a replaced ball won't stay in its original spot?

When a ball comes to rest against a movable obstruction — a rake left in a bunker, for instance — Rule 15.2 lets the player lift the ball, remove the object, and replace the ball at its original spot. The trouble starts when that spot is on a slope and the ball won't hold. Rule 14.2e covers exactly this: after two failed attempts to replace the ball where it was, the player must find the nearest spot in the same area of the course, not nearer the hole, where it will actually stay at rest, and play from there. If that nearest spot happens to sit in short grass instead of a bunker, that's simply where the rule sends the ball — it isn't a loophole for an upgraded lie.

Can a ball blown off the green during a rules delay be put back?

Generally, no — unless it had already been lifted and marked. A ball still in play that gets moved by wind, even during a lengthy delay for an unrelated ruling, falls under Rule 9.3, which treats natural forces the same whether they act on a green or 250 yards back in the fairway: the ball is played from wherever it ends up. The only protection against this is to mark the ball before a delay begins. Once play continues without marking, a gust that carries the ball off the putting surface is simply part of the hole.

A ball still in play is at the mercy of the wind until it's marked — not after.