Here is how to hit a provisional ball under Rule 18.3 of the Rules of Golf: if your shot might be lost outside a penalty area or might be out of bounds, tell someone in your group, before you swing, that you are playing a provisional, using the word "provisional." Then play it from where you hit the last shot. If the original is found in bounds within three minutes, you abandon the provisional and play the original. If the original is lost or out of bounds, the provisional becomes your ball in play with a one-stroke penalty. Saying "I'll hit another" does not count.
The provisional exists to save time, so you do not walk two hundred yards, fail to find the ball, and walk all the way back. Most of the mistakes come from three places: hitting one when the Rules do not allow it, failing to announce it properly, and misunderstanding which ball you end up playing. Each is covered below.
Where These Answers Come From
The quotes on this page come from Rule 18 in the R&A's online Rules of Golf (read October 2, 2026). The R&A's Rules Hub lists the 2023 Rules of Golf as the current edition, and the USGA and The R&A publish the same Rules, so this applies on any course playing by the Rules of Golf. Older articles that cite "Rule 27-2" or a five-minute search describe rules that no longer apply. For the full primary text, our guide on where to read the official Rules of Golf points to it.
When You May Hit a Provisional
Rule 18.3a allows a provisional, "under penalty of stroke and distance," when the ball "might be lost outside a penalty area or might be out of bounds, to save time."
The key word is "might." You hit a provisional because you are unsure. That covers:
- A tee shot that drifted toward a boundary and you could not see where it stopped.
- A shot into deep rough, trees or a blind landing area where it could be hard to find.
- A ball that might be in a penalty area but might also be lost somewhere else, or might be out of bounds. The Rule specifically allows a provisional in those mixed cases.
When You May Not
If the only place the ball could be lost is a penalty area (the red or yellow staked areas), a provisional is not allowed. A penalty area has its own relief under Rule 17, and you can take that relief without finding the ball as long as it is "known or virtually certain" the ball is in there.
This matters because a "provisional" played in that situation is not a provisional at all. Under Rule 18.3, if a ball is played from where the previous stroke was made without a valid provisional, it becomes your ball in play under stroke and distance, and the original is out of play. You have just taken the most expensive option without meaning to.
How to Hit a Provisional Ball: The Announcement
This is the part golfers get wrong most often. Rule 18.3b says: "Before the stroke is made, the player must announce to someone that they are going to play a provisional ball." It then adds that merely saying "another ball" or "playing again" is not enough. The player "must use the word 'provisional' or otherwise clearly indicate" that the ball is being played provisionally.
So, practically:
- Say it clearly to someone in your group: "That might be out. I'm hitting a provisional."
- Say it before you swing, not after the second ball is in the air.
- Avoid casual phrases like "I'll reload," "let me hit another," or "I'll play again." Those are exactly the kind of wording the Rule says does not count.
If you do not announce it properly, Rule 18.3b says the ball you play from the previous spot "is the player's ball in play under penalty of stroke and distance." Your original ball is then out of play even if it is found sitting in the middle of the fairway.
Mark it differently
If your provisional is the same brand and number as your original, you will have trouble telling them apart if both are found. Rule 7.2 lets a player identify a ball by "seeing the player's identifying mark on the ball," so put a distinct mark on the provisional, or use a different number, before you hit it.
What Happens Next: Which Ball Counts
You do not choose which ball to play. The Rules decide, automatically, under Rule 18.3c.
The provisional becomes your ball in play when:
- The original is lost anywhere on the course except in a penalty area, or is out of bounds; or
- You play the provisional from a spot nearer the hole than where the original is estimated to be. At that moment, the Rule says, the original "is no longer in play (even if it is then found on the course before the end of the three-minute search time or is found nearer the hole than had been estimated)."
The provisional must be abandoned when:
- The original is found on the course outside a penalty area within the three-minute search time; or
- The original is found in a penalty area, or it is known or virtually certain to be there. Then you play the original as it lies or take penalty area relief under Rule 17.
When a provisional is abandoned, it becomes a wrong ball, and you must not play it again. All strokes made with it, including any penalty strokes from playing it, do not count.
You can keep playing the provisional on the way there
Rule 18.3c lets you keep playing the provisional without it losing its status, as long as each stroke is from a spot the same distance or farther from the hole than where the original is estimated to be. That saves time when the original might be well down the hole: hit the provisional, and if it finishes short of the original's estimated spot, play it again before you start searching.
The strategic choice the Rule allows
Here is a detail most explainers skip. Because the provisional becomes your ball in play the moment you play it from nearer the hole than the original's estimated spot, a player who has a good provisional and expects a poor result from the original can choose to play the provisional from that spot before searching. The original is then out of play. You cannot pick between the two balls after you find both, but you can decide whether to search at all before playing the provisional past that point. The Rules set the conditions; this is simply what they allow.
A Second Provisional
If the provisional itself might be lost outside a penalty area or out of bounds, Rule 18.3a lets you play another provisional. The same announcement requirement applies each time.
Counting Strokes With a Provisional
For a tee shot that might be out of bounds:
- Original found in bounds: play it. Your next shot is your second. Nothing you did with the provisional counts.
- Original lost or out of bounds: the provisional is your ball in play. The tee shot was one stroke, the penalty is one stroke, and the provisional was your third, so your next shot with it is your fourth.
How It Interacts With Model Local Rule E-5
Some courses adopt Model Local Rule E-5, which lets a player drop near where a ball was lost or went out, toward the fairway, for two penalty strokes. Under E-5, as published in the R&A's Committee Procedures (read October 2, 2026), a player may not use that option for the original ball once they have played a provisional. If the provisional itself is then not found or is out of bounds, E-5 can be used for the provisional. In other words, a provisional commits you to the stroke-and-distance path for the original. Our explainer on how local rules relate to the Rules of Golf covers how to find out whether a course uses E-5.
A Quick Checklist on the Tee
- Could the ball be lost outside a penalty area, or out of bounds? If yes, a provisional is allowed. If it could only be in a penalty area, it is not.
- Tell someone: "I'm hitting a provisional."
- Mark it so you can tell it from the original.
- Play it, and keep playing it while it stays short of the original's estimated spot.
- Search for up to three minutes. Original found outside a penalty area: play it, provisional abandoned. Not found or out of bounds: play the provisional, one penalty stroke.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have to say "provisional" in golf?
You must use the word "provisional" or otherwise clearly indicate you are playing one, under Rule 18.3b. Saying "another ball" or "playing again" is not enough, and the second ball then becomes your ball in play under stroke and distance.
Can you hit a provisional ball if your ball went in the water?
Not if the ball can only be in a penalty area. A provisional is allowed only when the ball might be lost outside a penalty area or might be out of bounds, including mixed cases where it might be in the penalty area or somewhere else.
What is the penalty for a provisional ball?
If the provisional becomes your ball in play, you take stroke and distance: one penalty stroke. If you find the original in bounds within three minutes and abandon the provisional, the provisional strokes do not count and there is no penalty from it.
Can I choose to play my provisional if I find my original ball?
No. If the original is found outside a penalty area within three minutes, you must abandon the provisional. The only way the provisional takes over is if the original is lost or out of bounds, or you play the provisional from nearer the hole than the original's estimated spot before finding it.
Can I hit a second provisional ball?
Yes. If the provisional itself might be lost outside a penalty area or out of bounds, Rule 18.3a lets you play another provisional, announced the same way.