I always operated under the assumption that when one holes out a chip or other shot off the green, one should remove the ball, leaving the flagstick in. Or, alternately, carefully remove the flag, leaving the ball in the hole. If one removes the flag and the ball comes out, the ball is not considered holed.

The other day another player in my group holed a chip. A different player, without asking the player who just holed the chip, yanked out the flagstick and the ball popped out. Everyone proceeded without comment.

Does the fact that the player and/or his caddy did not remove the flag make the ball popping out irrelevant. Or is the ball not considered holed out?

By definition, if the ball was at rest and the whole ball was below the top lip of the hole, then the ball is holed. It doesn't matter if they remove the stick and it pops out. It seems the only problem would be if the ball was not resting below the level of the lip of the hole and it popped out.

birdieXris wrote:

By definition, if the ball was at rest and the whole ball was below the top lip of the hole, then the ball is holed. It doesn't matter if they remove the stick and it pops out. It seems the only problem would be if the ball was not resting below the level of the lip of the hole and it popped out.

I looked in the Rules & Decisions and your response is right on the mark. I won't worry about people yanking the flagstick out anymore.

My advice. Always carry a rule book when you play with that guy. He makes up rules as he goes along.

Still the question remains--who should remove the stick? Certainly I would rather do it than trust it to the opponent.

legitimatebeef wrote:

Still the question remains--who should remove the stick? Certainly I would rather do it than trust it to the opponent.

Providing the ball is below the surface of the green it doesn't matter.

However, it is not advisable to pull the ball out using the flagstick, particularly if a greenkeeper is about, as it can damage the edge of the hole, for which the greenkeeper will be blamed.

Move the flagstick to one side, let the ball drop and then pick it out.

What happens if the whole ball is not below the lip of the cup? Can you move the flag stick to make it go below the lip? How do you proceed in this situation?

lazorbeam wrote:

What happens if the whole ball is not below the lip of the cup? Can you move the flag stick to make it go below the lip? How do you proceed in this situation?

I am virtually certain you may wiggle the flag to allow the ball to drop in.

lazorbeam wrote:

What happens if the whole ball is not below the lip of the cup? Can you move the flag stick to make it go below the lip? How do you proceed in this situation?

17-4. Ball Resting Against Flagstick
When a player’s ball rests against the flagstick in the hole and the ball is not holed, the player or another person authorized by him may move or remove the flagstick, and if the ball falls into the hole, the player is deemed to have holed out with his last stroke; otherwise, the ball, if moved, must be placed on the lip of the hole, without penalty.