Top Ways People Cheat when Playing Golf

[@drews1941]

The mysterious finding of a ball that we all know went way OB always makes me shake my head... they always are so casual about it as well

[@BadBoiFilms]

Sometimes you find your ball where you’re like “oh man everyone is going to think I planted this”

[@DCN2010]

I played in a charity four-man scramble recently. This is a fun annual event with a mix of beginner golfers and a handful of really good golfers. We came in third place at -7, second place was -8, and first place (who only had two players) came in at -18. I believe they over estimated what score they needed to take the prize money. BTW, they were the group behind my group so I saw a number of their approach shots… no chance they were 18 under. So frustrating.

[@thefallenmonk605]

I've only played in on charity scramble. Well you could pay for hole in ones so my rich boss wanted bragging rights with the co owners team. Well about 6k later we tied for first with their team. Most expensive box of ProV1s ever lmao

[@springinfialta106]

Players should repair divots, so I think a player whose ball ends up in a divot should be able to pick up the ball, fill the divot with sand and place the ball where it originally stopped.

[@Sluggo717]

I know the “Divot” rule has come up A LOT!!! I think we could start a movement from here to get the rule implemented, your thoughts? I think a roll right or left out of a divot or, just to ensure no closer to hole, roll out the back of Divot.

[@ShivasIrons22]

A pretty common one is dropping well up from where the ball actually crossed the hazard. Many times just far enough to open up a clear shot to the green.

[@nicknameunavailable809]

Our 18th has a pond on the left side. Further left (and up a small hill) is an outdoor pavilion. My buddies and I love to watch golfers come up 18 and drop 20 - 30 yards ahead of where their ball entered the penalty area!

[@davidfowles1252]

The one that really winds me up is when someone concedes a putt in a match and when you pick it up they then claim they hadn't. Another time an opponent told me my approach shot which was fading had gone out of bounds and being a trusting soul (sucker) I dropped and played with penalty. Guess what my original ball was in the rough but 15 yards in bounds but it was too late. Learned from that one, always declare a provisional and look for yourself. Luckily I got angry but channelled it and when on a par streak and won 4 and 2

[@mrneutral5081]

I’m not going to defend Patrick Reed because he’s brought it on himself. However, I do recall an incident where Reed claimed the ball was plugged, took relief and there was uproar. Rory McIlroy did exactly the same thing in the same event but because it’s Rory it didn’t attract the same condemnation.

[@TheChainChasers]

I got a buddy who's a damn decent golfer. Near scratch, and I catch him doing that coin crap all the dang time. Pisses me off he's too good to be cheating.

[@jeffburrell7338]

"Found it! Under this pile of grass cliippings" , "what you get...." had a par from the lake and a three put! , LOL

[@oatechaosincycles]

I don't know if this annoys others like it annoys me, but when I play golf, even with a friend, I get the sense that they are sometimes internally competing with me. That's fine but when they start doing the things like improving the lie or not counting every stroke like " i'm not hitting out of these pebbles" then not taking the unplayable...it bothers me. I know full well they made double or triple and they'll be like "gimme a bogey". Whatever man...

[@undefinedlegend928]

I would rather never win, then win by cheating.

[@legend9018]

Down here in florida when golf courses opened up during Covid they had every player ride by themselves. It’s amazing how many balls were found during the single rider era lol. Now that we are back double rider those scores are back on the rise 😂 These tournament scrambles are ridiculous. 4 guys hammered drunk that can barely stand, let alone hit a golf ball, roll in and post a 49…really.

[@davidfowles1252]

I love those videos, that is how I first found your channel as I 'caught' someone in the act on a casual round at another course and it actually made me laugh. I wanted to see what else I might be missing, the same way we should also be aware of all of the rules and where you can legally 'cheat' i.e. when you can take relief, penalties and free drops. Somone once quoted that how someone behaves (etiquette) on the golf course says a lot about their general character and the same is said for those who cheat. Apparently (both sides of the pond) it is politicians with a love of golf who can often be found to be massaging their scoring claims ! Just goes to show you, cheat at golf = Don't trust them for anything.

[@ironsideeve2955]

How did you approach them about it

[@thebakfixr]

So much for golf being a gentleman's game! I wonder if players in the old days (Ben Hogan, Walter Hagen, Bobby Jones...) utilized the same sneaky ways of cheating?? When I'm playing for fun I'll take the liberty of doing a few of those things you mention, but never would I do that during a match. I do admit that cheating during 4-man scramble outings is common, and I've been in groups where the mulligan putts to make Birdie are a little too frequent.

[@davidfowles1252]

Totally agree. Number of times a stone in a bunker had miraculously made the lie better in the bunkers! And I have seen people shuffling their big old poker chip markers nearer the hole. One of my old golf buddies even saw someone drop a ball down their trouser leg in the rough when their ball had clearly gone nowhere near where they 'found' it. Would have been funnier if the guy had been wearing shorts !

[@davesober2093]

When I play someone, I will let them set it up ANYWHERE. That includes teeing it up in the fairway. That way nobody can cheat. As a sidenote, when the hero decides he will tee it up and go for the par 5 in two, he usually slices it from over-swinging and brings a 6 or 7 into play and my 4 or 5 wins.

[@Sluggo717]

I had a guy who hit his ball towards an out of bounds hazard but I found it just inside and still fair. He was looking farther up and said he found it up there closer and still in bounds..🤔

[@greglist2991]

Yes the Vaseline/chapstick trick does work. It’s physics Matt, it’s similar to having a jumper lie, grass gets between the ball and club face, but this is consistent. I saw it used w pro poker playing golf for high stakes(50k/hole). It goes straighter and long by 30-40 yards. I think cuz you’re a low handicap and pure striker of the ball there is little difference. But a high handicap and someone who doesn’t hit it center face will see big difference.

[@davidfowles1252]

I have always hit a completely different brand of ball for a provisional as do many of my golf friends so there is no ambiguity on which balls was played for the second shot (if you find the first). I have used yellow balls for provisionals or had a totally different marking on them and I always declare it if I play it, as we all do but I am sure there are some who try their luck

[@kennethdias9988]

The putting one cracks me up . Like 1 inch makes a difference on a 12 foot putt. Good golfers should never miss a 4 foot putt

[@eriksnider7189]

I mean, I get the point about moving out of a divot for free but we're skirting really close to having lift clean and place on any fairway. Would that really be that bad tho? Raise the reward for hitting in the fairway... i dunno

[@joshlafave6022]

It wasn't tournament play however I was playing behind a group who's pace was extremely slow. I hit my shot where the ball landed behind a player who I saw loose his ball in the woods on a sharp dog leg left hole. He heard my shot and saw my ball roll as it drew around the bend. into the fairway. I watched him plain as day and he knew I was watching while he played my ball as if it was his. I have never seen that before and I am wondering if anyone else has seen anything as brazen as that. Also did you confront this player how did you handle it?

[@scrout]

if the golf app tracked/logged your position by gps it would provide some additional data for review afterwards

[@normlang1994]

I don't consider anything "cheating" unless we have a bet going or unless I'm playing in an event with prizes. Otherwise, I say, take a lower score and try to play to a lower handicap 😆

[@SiLoMixMaster]

This is why I don't pay to enter club 'competitions' - it ends up just being a bunch of middle aged men trying to cheat each other out of 50 bucks. Pathetic.

[@Seektruth-59]

Thanks for the tips.

[@mannyo4231]

When they miss the fairway< bounce into the woods. And say i would have found it, but i wanna keep the pace moving for group behind us. Im not gonna charge myself a stroke, thats "findable"

[@ironsideeve2955]

So +1...

[@Shimmed]

Have you heard of the rectal ball? Also known as a “San Francisco Treat.” A player will carry one or more “extra” balls only to “release” one at an opportune time when the ball they’re playing is lost or has a bad lie.

[@rheffner3]

I pretty much play by myself these days but when I did play with others I would always ask on the first tee what rules we were playing by. I didn't care as long as we all played by the same rules. You want to play preferred lies? OK by me. Even in the rough? OK by me. The Rules of Golf. OK by me. As long as we played by the same rules. The biggest cheating I have seen is in scrambles. I had a 4 man scramble team for quite a few years that played in several scrambles a year. For a good chuck of money. We could shoot 10 to 12 under on average. Pretty darn good. But there were always a couple of teams cheating big time. So one of our players, who we called Johny Skates (lol) would keep score. Helped us win. Didn't feel too bad about it. It's good to get someone you don't know out on the course. They cheat at golf, they cheat at life.

[@Sluggo717]

The person in the fastest cart always finds their ball and never have a bad lie

[@Alan2puttsGolf]

The people that walk up to a ball in the rough and stand the grass down behind the ball when looking at the flag like before selecting the club . Does my head in

[@Tognar]

I’ve heard of a member at an exclusive private club got expelled because the member-guest partner that he won a tournament with had two handicaps. One sandbagger and one real. So shady!

[@nicg4103]

Always picking up the ball to “check if it’s theirs” but always improves the lie

[@shREDhead44]

When I was first starting out in golf, I would move my ball out of divots or dirt in the fairways or hit the bushes on practice swings, talk in peoples backswings etc. I didn’t know the game or etiquette and wasn’t taught and none of them raised an eyebrow. They took great delight in destroying me and I could never keep up no matter how much I “improved” my lie, in fact they’d move my ball from time to time, into a more favorable position out of “mercy”. Now that the tables are turned and they can no longer keep up let alone win a match against me, I have to constantly prove I’m not the same golfer from 15 years ago who didn’t know the game. It’s totally frustrating, I’d say to new players just to learn the game and follow suit even though it means crappy lies out of divots in the middle of poppy hills fairways. You’ll be better served in your future.

[@adamkirshbaum9733]

I play with a guy when you call him out for cheating he gets mad. Then you start counting his strokes to him and he’s like oh yeah ur right.

[@iec7587]

"you dont need to keep my score, I know what I have"

[@DrRockso.]

A guy I play with marks his ball on the side and places his ball in front of the marker. Plus practice swings in sand, grounding his club is the bunker, dude is hard to play with. Matt everything your talking about sounds like the guy I play with. Hilarious but ridiculous.

[@robertshields6214]

I had no idea you couldn't put your club down behind the ball in the rough. Of course it's going to push the grass down behind the ball but I see everyone, including pros do this.

[@oatechaosincycles]

Yes I thought the same thing. You are allowed to address your ball aren't you?

[@ahastar1141]

You can, but what is happening is the player will address the ball 3-5 times with say a 3 wood which flattens down a larger portion of grass than say an iron, then ultimately decide they are going to hit the iron. The logic is they are going to hit the iron the while time and by addressing it with a bigger club, pat down more of the grass behind the ball

[@coops1964golf]

it was Kucher who was after relief from a ball embedded in someone else's pitchmark.....

[@ahastar1141]

I have seen a guy intentionally run his ball over with a cart because the lie was horrendous then ask for relief since he "accidentally" drove over his ball and drop in a much better lie.

[@robertshields6214]

We play clean and place with friends because central Florida courses are usually pretty wet during the summer. I also have a friend with huge ball marker. It's basically the size of the top of a coke can. Pisses me off because he gains a few inches on most putts.

[@self-preservationsociety7057]

Maybe a provisional ball should be initialled before hitting , ‘ I know , people can still scam that as well ‘

[@willharmon6942]

The main one I see when playing is somebody giving themself a putt that is a good 5 footer or more

[@johnherman3261]

How about stepping behind the ball to improve your lie, I’ve seen that one a few times. I like to think that some cheaters are just oblivious of the rules, they just don’t know better. Love ya man!

[@Alan2puttsGolf]

Was it not the player ( American ) who ripped off the caddy in Mexico with his fee that tried to pull the imbedded ball in the fairway ? From memory

[@bobr5274]

I played with a guy that we would say he hits the ball so hard the logo would change.

[@ironsideeve2955]

He didn't even get centre face contact did he?

[@dzaino1986]

I play with folks that constantly put down the wrong score on a hole. Claims to have found the ball off the fairway, yadda yadda. Whatever. You're only hurting yourself.

[@TruthFighterReed0049]

Yes I watch someone I was playing with take 15 practice swings in sand bunker. Actually hitting sand. Dude

[@chrismunson9104]

Ok Mr. Reed 🤣

[@andrecharters1576]

I think that a provisional ball should be a different colour this would stop Confusion and cheated

[@zachgalante3577]

Phil is back

[@acemanNL]

Playing on the Losers InVitational tour... 😀

[@biagiocozza8875]

Great video, golf is easy, play as it lies, I can’t stand cheaters

[@Drew_peaballs_128]

The guys I play golf with don’t even hide their cheating Drops of out the bunker Top the ball 10 times down the fairway and say they got par 6 putt on a par 4 and write down a bogey slice it onto the highway and see it bouncing down the highway and they magically find it in the middle of the fairway Classic

[@alligatorshade8110]

Cheating in scrambles is rampant nothing is more annoying than 2 10 handicaps shooting -10 or better and winning money. Especially when you know them and they spray the ball all over the place

[@scottbourassa4511]

What is the point of playing if your going to cheat, doesn't make any sense.

[@marksefton751]

The best one I saw was a guy kicking his ball 10 yards up a hole in a tournament....in front of his playing partners. and our group standing on the adjacent tee. The best thing was that when he got to where he'd booted his ball to, he obviously didn't fancy the lie, so he gave it another boot another 10 yards further up😝 Hey, give the guy a break, he was obviously having a bad day!!!! (absolutely true story 🙏)

[@jrosa7319]

Old adage - A marked putt never gets longer.

[@thecringegolfer]

The little muni Ii play is pretty rough with bare lies especially during drought periods, you might not find any grass. So there is a lot of "improved lie" stuff going on. In my opinion if everyone just plays by the "play it where it lies" rule, there's no unfair advantages. Chances are good, everyone is going to have that same dirt lie as the people they're playing with. But I had to get on to 77 and 80 year old brothers who I was playing in a scramble against, who moved their ball out of the taller grass (which is only there because we got a couple showers recently) around the green, and up closer to the greens edge where it's a tighter lie, just so they could use their Texas wedges and not chip. But these two guys are good players and even at their age, will beat most people playing in the scramble, without cheating. They have played for most their lives and know the rules but will try and get away with it if they can, just so they can earn some of their beer money back.

[@CoolDaysEnd]

When you play golf you usually know the "cheaters". So you watch them like a hawk. Of course if your are playing with people you don't know, just beware.

[@ironsideeve2955]

100% you should be able to drop if your ball is in a divot on the faiway

[@rollingthunder8873]

Scam in the reply’s. someone claiming to be msg giving prizes. It’s phishing

[@FittinToGet]

Some people play on real dog tracks...moving the ball to a nice spot is acceptable. But that's really the only things allowable in my opinion. Old guys tend to ground the club in bunkers...they can't see as well. Once played with a guy that purposely kept a hole in pocket. Easy way to drop a call down his leg when needed. Had to walk with him to find his "lost" ball. Golf is great ain't it?

[@iec7587]

smooth and place in a unraked bunker?? hole in the pants is from James Bond

[@cbus3353]

Congratulation's on winning the Memorial Tournament!

[@coreygardner8424]

I took it from the video that you don't like Patrick Reed 🤣

[@biagiocozza8875]

The one with Patrick Reed, you can see sand move, he should have called a penalty on him self, but never did, that is just plain cheating

[@jmcarbone2754]

I played with a guy who never lost a ball in the woods.

[@dzaino1986]

Patrick Reed was voted as least likely to back up in a bar fight. Biggest cheat/liar on tour

[@Rblaze69]

I wonder if it’s happened, it’s happened, I’ve seen it, it’s happened. Yep it’s happened at the club I’ve seen it it’s happened.

[@tylerhawk5627]

My cousin is notorious “fluffer”

[@jamiesloan7259]

That was Patrick Reed. He’s well known for being a cheater.

[@justinkreyhomes2457]

Anybody ever tell you that you look like Billy Horshel ?

[@rollingthunder8873]

Closest to the pin last group through shotgun.

[@acemanNL]

Cheaters in golf, cheaters in life!!!

[@ELKORA2324]

Patrick cheats with cameras

[@soulsurvivor3428]

Rolling your ball in the fairway and recording that score in a handicap system is cheating. It's cheating any tiyyou do this. It isn't allowed in the rules. Sir, you are a cheater.

[@forrestrhodes]

In his defense, Patrick Reed asked the spotter if it bounced and she said no.

[@ironsideeve2955]

Yeah and then patted down the grass like an FBI agent

[@pfh_golf]

I see guys all the time in preferred lie move it up forward

[@mikebeard3110]

rolling balls on the fairway, in the rough or in a bunker is CHEATING

[@iec7587]

not if your group agrees to it beforehand

[@ducatidad8231]

My club no longer uses live leaderboard on our app. I wonder why 🫢😉