Golf has a long rulebook to make sure every situation is covered, even the rare ones. During the 2022 PGA Championship at Southern Hills, Richard Bland hit a shot onto the 3rd green, but a squirrel stopped the ball and pushed it back into the fairway. Bland made bogey, shared the video online, and moved on. The rules already covered this scenario.

Three different rules came into play during this incident. Here’s how each one works.

Richard Bland and Rule 11.1: When an animal intercepts a ball in motion

Rule 11.1 is clear: if a ball in motion is accidentally deflected by an outside influence, there is no penalty. Animals count as outside influences. But he had to play not from the green but from the fairway.

In Bland’s case, the key detail was timing. The squirrel touched the ball while it was still moving, so Bland had to play it from where it ended up in the fairway. The rule applies the same way regardless of whether the deflection involves an animal or a spectator. What matters is that the contact was accidental and occurred while the ball was in motion, not before or after.

If the ball had already stopped on the green before the squirrel got involved, Rule 9.6 would have let Bland replace it. The difference is small, but the rulebook is clear: you play a moving ball from where it ends up.

Rule 13.1d: Accidental movement on the putting green

Before 2019, if you accidentally moved your ball on the green, you got a penalty stroke. This rule punished both mistakes and bad luck. In 2019, the USGA and R&A changed it: now, if a player accidentally moves their ball on the green, there’s no penalty and the ball is simply put back. If the position is not certain, it has to be estimated.

This started as a Local Rule in 2017 and then became standard everywhere, making the game fairer and less harsh on accidents. The change also covers cases where wind or a practice stroke moves the ball, since penalizing players for these things didn’t make sense. Now, you just have to put the ball back before your next shot.

Rule 4.1 & 4.2: What players can and cannot apply to clubs and balls

Rule 4.2 sets out what players can use to clean their clubs. Saliva, water, and a towel are allowed. Substances like Vaseline or grease, used to change ball flight or reduce spin, are not. The rule is clear: cleaning is allowed, but trying to alter the club’s effect on the ball is not. That crosses the line into equipment modification, which the rules treat as a threat to the game’s integrity.

The distinction matters because spin and trajectory directly affect scoring, and any deliberate alteration to those variables gives a player an advantage that equipment regulations are specifically designed to prevent. A club cleaned with saliva before a shot is legal; the same club coated with a friction-reducing substance is not.

You might — although this is more of a myth than a reality — gain some distance. But the drive on the first tee might also turn out to be your last shot of the day, if you get caught. And no, you can not apply substance to your clubface before the round. You need to play with clubs that conform with USGA rules, and a “modified” club will be deemed non-conforming.

Golf’s rulebook helps keep the game going, even when strange things happen. These rules all follow the same idea: figure out what happened, be fair, and let the game continue. The 2025 season has already shown that surprises are always possible in professional golf.