What Is Out of Bounds in Golf?

Written by Todd in Golf Terms

Out of bounds is a boundary line either marked by a fence or white posts.  Any ball past the inside edge of the fence or posts is considered out of bounds.  The golfer is unable to play this shot and must re-hit from the previous spot and take a penalty stroke.

If you are new to the game of golf, there can be many rules or terms that can leave one confused.

There are all of the scoring terms: eagle, birdie, par, bogey, double bogey, triple bogey etc.

You also have the different go to terms that golfers use throughout the 18 hole 4 hour round.

Let’s jump right!

So what is out of bounds in golf?

The most devastating result in golf! Keep your ball in play to help lower your score!

Typically, the golfer will head back to the tee box or the previous shot from the fairway or rough and rehit. If it was the initial tee shot on the hole, the golfer is now hitting three from the tee box.  If the golfer was playing his or her second shot from the fairway or rough and hits one out of bounds, they are now hitting four from the previous location.

Out of bounds is a devastating penalty in the game of golf and feared by many golfers.  Many golfers will avoid it at all costs and aim away from out bounds.  Some of the most difficult shots in golf are when out of bounds is located down both sides of a hole.

There is out of bounds left on this hole. The aim spot is actually the right edge of the fairway. See tip #2 below for more details!

Tip 1: Play A Provisional Shot

There is nothing worse than hitting a ball out of bounds, walking up to the location and realizing that the ball is out of bounds.  The golfer now needs to walk 200-300 yards back and re-hit.  The best solution to having to walk both legs of this 200-300 yard journey is to hit a provisional ball.

If your ball is suspected to be lost or out of bounds, you can announce ont he tee that you are hitting a “provisional ball.”  Be very clear with your playing partners that it is a provisional shot.  This allows you to play the original shot if for some reason it is not out of bounds or is located when you thought it would be lost.

Not saying the actual term provisional, could mean that you are putting another ball in play and are hitting your 3rd shot right then and there.  Even if your original golf ball is located, if you didn’t say you are hitting a provisional, by rule you must play the 2nd golf ball that you hit. 

Other Golf Terms:

Up and Down in Golf

Laying Up in Golf

Tip 2: Avoid Out of Bounds

Did you know that on the PGA Tour the average dispersion for golfers when hitting a driver is 65 yards?  This is the range between the furthest right golf ball and the furthest left golf ball.  While some golf courses have really large and wide fairways, on average a fairway might be around 30 yards in width with 50-55 yards between two sets of trees on the edges of the hole.

Understand when you arrive at the hole the strategy and where the out of bounds exist.  While many golfers might default to aiming right down the middle of the fairway, you should look at the widest portion of the landing area and aim there.  Decade Golf and Scott Fawcett have studied the numbers and you should aim for the widest portion.

Some of the quickest way to improve your golf score include the following:

  • Keep your ball in play
  • Avoid the double bogey
  • Increase your swing speed
  • Improve your up and down percentage

It all starts with that first tee shot on a hole, keep the ball in play by having the best aim points to keep your ball in play.  By playing the percentages to the widest part of the landing area, you can keep your ball in play.  Over time, even if your ball ends up in the rough, keeping the ball in play and avoiding penalty strokes will help you shoot the lowest scores possible over the time.

Tip 3: Develop a Stock Shot

In order to avoid the out bounds on a course, you will want to develop a shot pattern that you can predict.  The worst golfers with the highest handicap have no idea on their shot pattern.  Sometimes they miss right, sometimes they miss left.  Sometimes they slice the ball, sometimes they hook the ball.  The key to playing successful golf is having a predictable ball pattern.  This helps you to aim properly and play the percentages.

Complete Post: What is a stock shot in golf?

The Drill: Stock Shot Drill

  • At the driving range, set up an alignment stick about 6-8 yards in front of you, straight down your target line.
  • If you have a second alignment stick, set the stick 3-4 feet right of the first stick (for a draw) or left of the first stick (for a fade).
  • Complete your initial assessment see how many times out of 10 you can start the ball to the right or left of your target.  Pick one side and measure your game at this point.
  • The goal is to eventually get 7 out of 10 shots to start to the correct side and draw back towards the target.

Here is the drill being explained by Kyle Morris:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_i0DBchRnao&t=79s

What is the new rule for out of bounds?

For many years the only option on a lost ball or ball out of bounds was to head back to the original location to the previous shot.  Now golfers have another option, if the local rule is in play.  This is considered an alternative option

A new Local Rule will now be available in January 2019, permitting committees to allow golfers the option to drop the ball in the vicinity of where the ball is lost or out of bounds (including the nearest fairway area), under a two-stroke penalty.

When would a golfer use this alternative option?

If the local rule is in play and you hit a driver a considerable distance, but it happens to be just far enough left or right to be out of bounds, the golfer will want to activate this rule.  While it seems rather harsh to be hitting 4 from the fairway, ultimately this ends up being the case, but you will still need to hit a quality shot and still bring out of bounds into play on your 3rd shot.

The golfer is now hitting 4 from the fairway or nearest area vs hitting 3 from the tee box.  Most would have an advantage to take the 4th shot from the nearest area.

Error on the side of a hazard vs out of bounds. A hazard is less penalizing. See below for more details.

What is the difference between out of bounds and a hazard?

If you hit your golf ball into a hazard you can drop your ball within two clubs of the hazard, or on a lateral hazard you can move back as far as you want keeping your entry point in line with where it entered.  If this was your tee shot, you would now be hitting 3 from the entry point.  When you hit it out of bounds you are hitting 3 from the previous spot or 4 from the nearest area.  The out of bounds is a more significant penalty vs the hazard.

The key here is if you have a hazard on one side of the hole and out of bounds on the other, the hazard is less penalizing, which should be taken into consideration when selecting your aim point with the driver from the tee box.

My Secret To Golf Improvement

Let’s face it, in order to get really good at golf, we must practice frequently.  About three years ago, I made the leap and invested in a golf simulator build for my garage.  I went with a SkyTrak Launch Monitor and the TGC software and can now play over 100,000 courses including Augusta, Pebble Beach, Bethpage Black, Whistling Straits. St. Andrews and many other of the top 100 courses in the world.

This golf simulator setup, which is more affordable that you might imagine, has been a game changer.  I can now play golf everyday of the year regardless of rain, snow, cold weather or time of day.  I can practice or play rounds of golf.  I can stand in the 11th fairway at Augusta and with the auto-rewind feature I am able to practice my approach shots from various differences.

It is worth checking out through Rain or Shine Golf as they offer some incredible packages along with financing offers that are difficult to beat.

Some direct links to Rain or Shine Golf for pricing and financing:

Take Action – What You Can Do Today to Get Better

What does this mean for you?  I believe in the following recipe to get better:

1 – Improve your motion in the golf swing by identifying a golf instructor.  Here are some options:

Here is a list of golf instructors that we have reviewed:

2 – Train to swing faster and improve your swing speed.  Here are some options:

Looking to gain more Speed and Distance in your swing. Two Options:

3 – Understand course strategy and work to break through your next barrier.  Here is a series on breaking through:

We have provided guides on how to break 100, 90, 80 and 70. Check out more below, if interested.

4 – Practice Frequently

Did you know that I build a golf simulator in my garage and have played over 500 rounds of golf on my SkyTrak system?  It has been a game changer and one worth checking out. Here are some of my other posts on golf simulators frequently asked questions:

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