I had a good drive on #17. Where it landed, in the middle of the fairway, the grass was as tall as one third the height of the ball. In the grass, directly under the ball was a pine straw. I couldn't tell at the moment but the ball was lying on and at the beginning of the straw. I gently pulled the straw. As I pulled the straw, the ball rolled. It never left the spot it was in but merely rolled over as the point of a ball point pen would roll in place if you rubbed your finger over it. I took the penalty but am not sure it was correct since the ball did not move from the place it landed but merely rolled in place. What would have been correct?

Your long ago asked question was a good one. Darned if I knew the answer. I asked the rules expert at our state association (Golf Association of Michigan) and she was not sure. Finally I asked the USGA. The USGA response was that it is presumed that the ball moved downward even if it did not appear to move from its position. Since the ball moved downward, the player caused the ball to move. Therefore, the player incurs a one stroke penalty and the ball must be replaced - see Rule 18-2a.

Personally I don't like the idea of presuming the ball moved when close observation did not indicate any movement. However, the USGA is always right so now you have the answer. You correctly took a penalty for presumably moving the ball.

Lots of luck replacing the ball to its original position. Which of course if you did not do so, the result is playing from a wrong spot and another penalty

Thanks bkuehn1952 for your response. After all this time I had not received a satisfactory answer but yours was well thought out and points to the correct rules (of which there seem to be too many).

At least I did the right thing at the time and took the penalty and am pleased with that. I am also pleased to find folks like you who seem to be serious about keeping the game clean and pristine by knowing the correct rules and following them.

Again, thanks for your answer.