Previously, players were not permitted to lift a ball for identification when a ball lay in a hazard. Consequently, players did not incur a penalty if the only strokes made with a wrong ball were made while the ball lay in a hazard. Under the revised Rules, players are permitted, by Rule 12-2 (identifying ball), to lift a ball lying in a hazard in order to identify it and will be in breach of Rule 15-3 (wrong ball) if a wrong ball is played from any part of the course (an exception is made, to both of these Rules, for a ball that is moving in water in a water hazard.
A player in breach of Rule 15-3 incurs a two-stroke penalty in stroke play or loss of hole penalty in match play.
Under Rule 12-2 before lifting the ball, the player must announce his intention to his opponent in match play or his marker or a fellow-competitor in stroke play and mark the position of the ball. He may then lift the ball and identify it, provided that he gives his opponent, marker or fellow-competitor an opportunity to observe the lifting and replacement. The ball must not be cleaned beyond the extent necessary for identification when lifted under Rule 12-2.
For more on these rules and other rules of golf please consult the USGA Rules of Golf, 2008-2009 edition.
Good Golfing,
Golf Shop Staff and Jim McGrath, Rules Chairman