Should there be a penalty for playing a wrong ball?

[John Morrissett]

Bob -

That is a valid concern - pace of play. You are certainly correct that there would be more situations when a player would have to return to the area to search for the original ball. While that would be a negative, my thinking is that the positives (no more penalty for play of a wrong ball and the simplification of no more lifting a ball for identification) would more than offset the few times a player would need to return to resume search for his original ball.

I suppose the practical test would be how often does a player today lift a ball under Rule 12-2 and find out that it is not his ball? This is the situation that would lead to the temporary delays you mention, but my unscientific observation is that such events are quite rare. The worst-case scenario would be with practice balls (so perhaps more Committees would mark the practice area as out of bounds).

Best regards,
John