Golf - Pace vs. Rules - Sometimes you can’t have your cake and eat it too. Sometimes the same people who complain about the pace of play are the same people who say the rules of golf are sacred and cannot be changed. Yet some of the rules are the very things that unnecessarily hurt the pace of play. Take, for example, the penalty for hitting a ball OB is stroke and distance, but if you hit a ball out of play into a lateral water hazard (identical type of shot), you do not have to take the time to hit a second shot from the tee. Solution: For all non-tournament play, abolish the stroke-and-distance penalty, and also the provisional ball rule. Instead use the same rule (for OB or lost ball) that exists for lateral water hazard (hit only once and drop ahead if you cannot find the ball) and everyone’s pace will improve. I would like all golfers to start a movement to come up with more ideas on improving pace. Other than formal tournaments, any rule that interferes with pace of play should be evaluated for possible change. Let’s hear some other ideas. (see www.geocities.com/golfwithjoey)