SESKStuff Everyone Should Know
SESK: Stuff Everyone Should Know · sesk.info/golf-wrong-ball-stroke-play

In stroke play, you hit someone else's ball by mistake. What happens?

Two penalty strokes, and you must go back and play your own ball.

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  1. Two penalty strokes, then play your own ball ✔
  2. One penalty stroke, keep playing the other ball
  3. No penalty if it was the same brand

Why: Rule 6.3c gives the general penalty, two strokes, for a stroke at a wrong ball. The strokes with the wrong ball do not count, and you must correct it by playing your own ball.

Huh, didn't know that: If you do not fix the mistake before teeing off on the next hole, you are disqualified.

The dad joke
Why do golfers draw on their balls? So they don't end up playing somebody else's story.
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References

Answer: Two penalty strokes, then play your own ball. Rule 6.3c gives the general penalty, two strokes, for a stroke at a wrong ball. The strokes with the wrong ball do not count, and you must correct it by playing your own ball.

  1. The R&A, Rules of Golf, Rule 6 Playing a Hole www.randa.org/en/rog/the-rules-of-golf/rule-6
    In stroke play, the player gets the general penalty (two penalty strokes) and must correct the mistake by continuing play with the original ball
    Checked 2026-10-12.

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Test yourself in the game

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