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What can a caddy not do?

Author

Noah Mitchell

Published Jan 18, 2026

The player or caddie must not set an object down anywhere on or off the putting green to show the line of play. This is not allowed even if that object is removed before the stroke is made.

What is a caddy allowed to do?

The player may have a caddie carry his clubs and have additional people carry items other than clubs like a rain suit, cap, umbrella or food and beverage. The additional people would be considered outside agencies, and any items carried by them would also be considered outside agencies while in their possession.

Can a caddie touch the ball?

7. Caddies should not touch a player's ball unless instructed by the player. 8. Caddies should carry a damp towel to clean clubs and balls 9.

Can a caddie line up a putt?

If your caddie stays stood on your intended line for a putt when you hit your ball, this is a violation of Rule 10.2b (1). They may stand on the intended line to help their player but must move away before he takes his stroke.

Can a caddie remove the ball from the hole?

The player's caddie is allowed to mark and lift the player's ball on the putting green any time the player is allowed to do so, without needing authorization. The caddie continues to be allowed to replace the player's ball only if the caddie was the one who had lifted or moved the ball.

15 related questions found

Can you touch the green before putting?

Current Rule: Under Rule 16-1a, when a player's ball is on the putting green: ➢ The player is generally prohibited from touching his or her line of putt. ➢ But there are seven exceptions (such as when removing loose impediments or movable obstructions, when lifting or replacing a ball, when repairing ball marks, etc.).

Why do caddies hold the flag?

In golf, tending the flag means that someone - either you, your caddie, or another golfer - stands next to the flagstick (the flag sticking out of the hole) and removes it after the person playing has made their putt.

Can you switch caddies?

The choice of a golf caddie may not rank as important as the selection of a wartime president (although some pro golfers might disagree on that point), but changing caddies during a golf competition can obviously be disruptive. Nevertheless, a player is typically permitted to change caddies during a round.

Can a caddie touch the green?

No advantage is gained if a player or his or her caddie merely touches the surface of the putting green on the line where the ball will be played.

Can you stand directly behind someone putting?

A caddie is NO longer allowed to stand behind the player to help with alignment. At the moment the player begins to take his stance, the caddie must not deliberately stand directly behind the player. The penalty is two strokes in stroke play. There is one exception which applies only on the Putting Green.

Can you have two caddies?

(1) Player Allowed Only One Caddie at a Time. A player may have a caddie to carry, transport and handle his or her clubs, give advice and help him or her in other ways allowed during a round, but with these limitations: The player must not have more than one caddie at any one time.

Can a player have 2 caddies?

General Rules

Pursuant to Rule 6-4, a player may only use one caddie at a time. In stroke play, the player loses two strokes at each of the first two holes during which she uses more than one caddie.

Can you lay down on the green to read a putt?

Q. May I kneel or lie on the green to read a putt? A. Although not recommended, yes.

Can a caddie give advice?

10.3 Caddies. Purpose of Rule: The player may have a caddie to carry the player's clubs and give advice and other help during the round, but there are limits to what the caddie is allowed to do. The player is responsible for the caddie's actions during the round and will get a penalty if the caddie breaches the Rules.

Can caddies coach?

Caddies are literally on the hip of their player during every round and practice session, but they aren't there to coach. They have an important role on the two-person team (Unwritten Rules of Caddying) but this doesn't normally include providing technical feedback.

How important is a caddie in golf?

The golf caddy is an important job. The caddy is there to help provide assistance to the golfer and serve their needs. They have many different types of responsibilities that go beyond carrying the golfer's clubs and keeping score.

Can you change balls to putt?

You can also substitute a different ball any time you are taking relief, including both free and penalty relief. Unless the one-ball Local Rule is in effect, the substituted ball could be any brand. On the putting green however, when you mark and lift your ball, you must replace that same ball to finish out the hole.

Are you allowed to tap down spike marks?

The New Rule: Golfers are now allowed to repair almost any damage on the green, such as spike marks, ball-marks, indentations from a club or flagstick, and animal damage. They are not permitted to repair aeration holes, natural surface imperfections, or natural wear of the hole.

Can you chip from the green?

It is legal within the rules of golf to chip on the green. The USGA says that you can use any club in your bag from any location on the golf course. This means that if you want to hit your chip from one side of the green to the other, you can do so.

Can you change caddies during a round of golf?

Decision 6-4/8 holds that golfers playing in the same competition at different times can caddie for each other. They can also change, hire or fire a looper mid-round. There is one no-no: temporarily exchanging caddies to get advice.

Is it a hole in one if you hit the flag?

If you hit the flag it's 2 stroke penalty in stroke play or loss of hole if you are in match play. If you are off of the green there is no penalty if you hit the flag unless you ask someone to tend it and then they don't pull it out.

Should you leave the flag in when putting?

In a statement on its website, The USGA says there “should be no advantage in being able to putt with the unattended flagstick in the hole.” It continues by saying that “In some cases, the ball may strike the flagstick and bounce out of the hole when it might otherwise have been holed,” while “in other cases, the ball ...

When can a caddie tend the flag?

"Tending the flag" means that someone — your caddie, another golfer — stands next to the flagstick in order to remove it from the cup after you've struck your putt. Note that (as of the 2019 Rules of Golf edition) a golfer may choose to play to the hole with the flag in or the flag out, at the player's preference.

Can you legally stand behind the ball to putt?

The USGA and the R&A took notice and, effective January 1, 1968, introduced Rule 35-1L (now Rule16-1e) that stated “The player shall not make a stroke on the putting green from a stance astride, or with either foot touching, the line of the putt or an extension of that line behind the ball.”

Is there a penalty for hitting someone's ball on the green?

In stroke play only, if both balls lay on the putting green prior to the stroke, the player making the stroke incurs a penalty of two strokes (Rule 19-5a). The moved ball must be replaced (Rule 18-5) and the striking ball is played from where it came to rest.