By this point, you should have a basic idea of the philosophy and technique used to employ the Coaches' Rules to your game of golf. However, we are far from done. There are many more rules that make for a much more pleasurable day at the local links.
Penalty Strokes
This is a difficult and testy subject amongst golfers. When should someone be assessed a penalty stroke? Answer: NEVER!! Penalty strokes can only be taken by the golfer himself (or herself) and should never be assessed to anyone. Worry about your own game, not other people's games. If someone doesn't want to take a stroke penalty, fine. Don't destroy that poor fool's self-esteem by yelling at him about not being correct on the course.
Now a much more difficult question: When should I take a penalty stroke? Answer: When you deserve one. Simple, huh? However, some situations that may seem to call for a penalty stroke, in reality, do not. Let us discuss some of those now.
Water hazards
If you hit one in the water, you really should take a penalty stroke. Unless you are able to find your ball. If the water sprites have gotten to it, you needn't take a stroke, but otherwise, assess a stroke penalty and grab another ball with a red ring around it from your bag and try again. (For more on Water Sprites, see Forest Imps below.)
Out of Bounds
Again, you really should take a penalty stroke here, unless the Forest Imps got to it and you can play the ball from a spot reasonably close (say, 90 feet) from where it went out of bounds. If you cannot meet these conditions, take a penalty stroke and drop within two clubs* and go again.
Forrest Imps and Water Sprites
These creatures are not merely mythological, but actually exist on every golf course that I have ever played. Their sole purpose in life is to take a ball that has been hit into the trees or the forest and quickly repaint it before you can get to it. For example, I was playing the seventh hole here at the Clewiston Golf Course, and my ball had the bright right turn signal on as it took off from the projected trajectory. My partner and I lost sight of the ball briefly and had to go look for it. When we found it, those darned Forrest Imps had gotten to it. I know it said "MaxFli" when it was on the tee, but when I found the ball, it said "Top Flite." And there was a lot of nasty snickering going on behind me as I lined up for my next shot.
Trust me, these creatures are in every water hazard and bit of wilderness that you will find on a golf course. Do not let them deter you from playing the correct ball just because of their little antics. Occasionally, if you get to the ball quickly enough, you will detect some wet paint still on the ball. You have been struck by a Forrest Imp. Play on.
Lost Balls
This time, you hit a pretty good shot (meaning you saw about where it landed) and you go to play your next shot, but you cannot find the ball. The Forrest Imps have not touched it, since you can find no trace of a ball, er I mean your ball with a different name. What could have happened?? Is Fox Mulder needed for this case??
No. The golf rules state that you should take stroke and distance penalties on this one. But do you ever see Tiger Woods lose a ball?? Of course not. How about Freddy Couples? Is that because every shot they hit is perfect, right down the middle of the fairway?? Well........, ok, most of them are, but not all them!! Why do they not lose golf balls?? Because they have 10,000 people standing along the fairway pointing at every bad shot they hit. They couldn't lose a ball if they tried. Nobody will let them.
Now, on a regular Saturday afternoon down at the local links, are there rangers along the course watching your tee shots and telling you exactly where they landed?? I don't think that it is very likely. So already the professionals have an advantage.
Now, ask yourself this question: Do major golf manufacturers beat down your door to give your their equipment? Again, I do not think so. When was the last time that David Duval actually paid for his golf balls? Exactly. Been quite a while. Has Titleist been shipping you a few dozen balls each week? Me neither. Again, advantage professional.
So now we look at the lost ball penalty.
We, your less than average golfers, do not get balls for free, not do we
have people pointing at where our balls land. So are we really going
to take a stroke and distance penalty for a shot we should have found?
Correct. Not a chance. The $3.00 penalty for a lost ball (have
you seen the price of new balls in the local pro shop recently?) is more
than enough for the below average golfer.