Watching line of putt

In stroke play, my opponent stood behind and watched my line of putt whilst I executed the stroke. This gave him an advantage as he read the play as his ball was ahead of mine. Should he be penalized for watching my line of putt?

I don't think there's a rule against this......i believe only ur caddie or your partner cannot stand on your line as u are putting.....they can only help you line up the putt but have to move once u r ready to putt.....

but it is common etiquette for your opponents not to stand in front or behind the line of the putt.....

and you always have the right to ask him to move......as any movement may distract you...

Read from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golf_etiquette that "Golfers should note each player's putting line, and avoid stepping on it as they play on the green or stand on a line of sight, that is, in the line of sight either ahead or behind a player who is attempting to putt. Players should not stand close to or directly behind the ball, or directly behind the hole, when a player is about to play."

This is one of the most unknown rule which i had to remind my playing partners over n over again.

8-2 Indicating Line of Play?

poresia wrote:

This is one of the most unknown rule which i had to remind my playing partners over n over again.

 bro,
This is not a rule.  It is a golf ettiquete.  There are no penalties involved. However, if a person does it all the time, intentionally or un intentionally, he may become a very lonely golfer

U need to be behind to see meh? From the side it can be quite obvious liao

No issue if opponents watch the line.

But playing partner cannot.

You can politely ask him to move away if he is in your line of sight.

Denmeister wrote:

poresia wrote:

This is one of the most unknown rule which i had to remind my playing partners over n over again.

 bro,
This is not a rule.  It is a golf ettiquete.  There are no penalties involved. However, if a person does it all the time, intentionally or un intentionally, he may become a very lonely golfer

 i got poked a couple of times... doing so..(unintentionally) being a season beginner, alway kaypo and want to see how people putt, from down the line... I have since refrained from doing so...

standing behind the golfer is the way to go.. but do watch your shadow as well... best is behind and further away...

nrafee wrote:

Denmeister wrote:

poresia wrote:

This is one of the most unknown rule which i had to remind my playing partners over n over again.

 bro,
This is not a rule.  It is a golf ettiquete.  There are no penalties involved. However, if a person does it all the time, intentionally or un intentionally, he may become a very lonely golfer

 i got poked a couple of times... doing so..(unintentionally) being a season beginner, alway kaypo and want to see how people putt, from down the line... I have since refrained from doing so...

standing behind the golfer is the way to go.. but do watch your shadow as well... best is behind and further away...

not even further away if the golfer can feel ur presence

I have the 'luxury' of starting golf with a group of golfers who taught me etiquette and really enjoyed their teachings and company. We try to uphold the 'gentleman-ness' of the game - Filling up divots, repairing greens, raking bunkers (the proper way), and all the common etiquette. Unfortunately, I realised that only few ever bother about etiquette - the game has lose much of its' gentlement-ness. Agree?

peace2903 wrote:

I have the 'luxury' of starting golf with a group of golfers who taught me etiquette and really enjoyed their teachings and company. We try to uphold the 'gentleman-ness' of the game - Filling up divots, repairing greens, raking bunkers (the proper way), and all the common etiquette. Unfortunately, I realised that only few ever bother about etiquette - the game has lose much of its' gentlement-ness. Agree?

 I totally agree!

There seems to be more spike marks on the greens, unraked bunkers, unfilled divots,  golfers quarreling over tee off priority, refusing faster players to overtake, etc...

All these are part of the etiquette of the game of Golf, which unfortunately, has been neglected by the newer generation of golfers and sadly enough, this extends beyond the golf course to our everyday lives as well. 

I had been introduced to the game by my parents 19 years ago with emphasis on etiquette first, how you play the game 2nd and this is the same principle I'm teaching my children.

Actually cannot pin it down to old or new generation golfers.
It is really down to the education and attitude of the golfer himself.

Just last Sunday, at kranji,  a flight of seasoned golfers ahead of my flight repeatedly drag their spikes across the greens and even at one point of time dragged the base of the flag across the green for god knows why.

Simply unbelievable.

i think there's golf etiquette, and then there's just basic manners

Where the lack of golf etiquette is concerned, (eg. raking bunkers, repairing divots / pitch marks, not stepping on putting line etc), this is probably a result of the fact that most golf coaches do not teach it to their students who are beginners. I myself only came to learn about all these things through playing with more experienced players. So where a beginner lacks golf etiquette, it is forgivable as long as he learns and does not repeat it

back to your question of watching the line of putt. i always thought that the rule is that u cannot watch your opponent's putt by positioning urself directly in front or behind the line of putt. but it's ok to watch from the side. but it seems from the preceding posts that it's just a matter of etiquette and not a rule.

Prob cos golfing in sg is so stressful. Esp nsrcc weekends

Seriously I also think that golfers who r not sensitive to their flight mates putting n affect their line of putt needs to be educated

I also played with some ppl who dun even know whether they should lift the pin up when the golf ball is on the green or not on the green. Whether they should even move or walk before their flightmates r making their putts or swing

Thts sad

Talking about line of putt.. Can ball mark or divot be repaired along your line of putt? If can after your repaired can you press or tap the spot? 
Confused....

Beneoo wrote:

Talking about line of putt.. Can ball mark or divot be repaired along your line of putt? If can after your repaired can you press or tap the spot? 
Confused....

Ball marks can be repaired, not spike marks, yes it can be tapped after repair...

Hopefully there are not too many divot marks on your line of putt!!!!!

Thanks mate

i would usually ask them are they my caddy or what ?

I wonder why the rule allow a pitch mark to be repaired but not spike marks?? What's the logic behind this? If you say tapping down on spike marks is improving line of putt, then repairing pitch mark can also be argued as doing that, right? 

Can tap down around the hole on line of putt, without pitch mark repair?

I stand corrected but isn't the rule allow only for repairing pitch mark? hence I always observed pros pull out the pitch fork and give the ground a few jabs before tapping down with the putter for avoidance of doubt

another practice I observed is the player notifying his playing partners what he deemed to be a pitch mark and then proceed to fix it. 

if one simply tap it down, may cause misunderstanding from playing partners / rules officials that you are trying to tap down spike marks

Moreover, I doubt one can properly fix a pitch mark by simply tapping. Use the pitch fork / tee  to poke around the pitch mark area and lift the soil (inwards) before tapping down

Itsuki wrote:

I wonder why the rule allow a pitch mark to be repaired but not spike marks?? What's the logic behind this? If you say tapping down on spike marks is improving line of putt, then repairing pitch mark can also be argued as doing that, right? 

Bro, this explanation is from USGA website in an attempt to explain why.

another strange rule for me is if ball moves on its own and the player is penalise (1 stroke?) for simply addressing the ball, even though the player did not touch the ball to cause it to move.
http://www.randa.org/Playing-Golf/Quick-Guide-to-the-Rules/Ball-Moved-Deflected-or-Stopped.aspx

Rule 16-1

USGA Position on Spikemarks
Q.  What is the USGA position on spikemarks?
A.  The Rules of Golf are based on two fundamental principles: (1) play the ball as it lies and (2) play the course as you find it. Permitting the repair of spike marks on a player`s line of play or putt would be contrary to these fundamental principles. Rule 16-1c permits the repair of old hole plugs and ball marks but does not permit the repair of spike damage or other irregularities of surface on the putting green if they are on a player`s line of play or putt or might assist him in his subsequent play of the hole. The distinction lies in the fact that old hole plugs and ball marks are easily identifiable as such, whereas it is impossible to differentiate between spike damage and other irregularities of surface on the putting green. Permitting the repair of spike marks would also inevitably lead to a slower place of play. Please note that proper etiquette recommends that damage to the putting green caused by golf shoe spikes be repaired on completion of the hole by all players, just as a player should fill up and smooth over all holes and footprints made by him before leaving a bunker. We feel that improved education and players` consideration for others rather than a change in the Rules of Golf is the proper solution to the problem.

I guess rules are rules...