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[quote=LindenH][quote=glfrjack]If you hit what you think is your ball and then find out afterwords that you've hit the wrong ball, you can go back and find your ball and continue play without penalty.

Why are you amazed that I left that out? Since during casual rounds, I don't bother walking back to the tee box to retee, it's not a consideration...

Now... if the group I was playing with were rule-bound, then I would mention to them that we would slow up play (even more) and would ask my group to let the group on the tee at least hit their tee shots before I reteed.

The etiquette of the situation was not the question that was asked, however...

If playing from anywhere but a hazard, LindenH is correct. However, playing the wrong ball from a hazard incurrs no penalty...

According to the Rules of Golf:

15-3 Wrong Ball
a. Match Play
If a player makes a stroke at a wrong ball that is not in a hazard, he loses the hole.
There is no penalty if a player makes a stroke at a wrong ball in a hazard. Any strokes made at a wrong ball in a hazard do not count in the player’s score.
If the wrong ball belongs to another player, its owner must place a ball on the spot from which the wrong ball was first played.
If the player and opponent exchange balls during the play of a hole, the first to make a stroke at a wrong ball that is not in a hazard, loses the hole; when this cannot be determined, the hole must be played out with the balls exchanged.

b. Stroke Play
If a competitor makes a stroke or Strokes at a wrong ball that is not in a hazard, he incurs a penalty of two strokes.
There is no penalty if a competitor makes a stroke at a wrong ball in a hazard. Any Strokes made at a wrong ball in a hazard do not count in the competitor’s score.
The competitor must correct his mistake by playing the correct ball or by proceeding under the Rules. If he fails to correct his mistake before making a stroke on the next teeing ground, or in the case of the last hole of the round, fails to declare his intention to correct his mistake before leaving the putting green, he is disqualified.
Strokes made by a competitor with a wrong ball do not count in his score.
If the wrong ball belongs to another competitor,its owner must place a ball on the spot from which the wrong ball was first played.
(Lie of ball to be placed or replaced altered — see Rule 20-3b.)
(Spot not determinable — see Rule 20-3c.)

Sorry glfrjack worng twice.
In match play you may declare a ball lost. But if found in play by another player they can insist it becomes the ball in play.
Secondly, if you hit a wrong ball it is a penalty, although there is something in the rules and if you hit a wrong ball out of a hazard it is no penalty.

First point, a ball is not 'lost' by declaration, it is deemed to be 'lost' after a five minute search, or after a substituted ball has been played under penalty of stroke & distance. If a player did not declare that his second ball was provisional, the first ball is deemed lost (whether found or not) and the second ball is the ball in play. A fellow-competitor (stroke play) or opponent (match play) wouldn't need to insist that the ball in play is the ball in play, if that's what it is. The lost ball found cannot become the ball in play if it is not already the ball in play.

Second point, glfrjack and golfmadmike are both saying the same thing, and are both correct

It's usually fairly busy where I play. Our usual group plays it with a 2 stroke penalty, so as not to have to go back and re-tee, which would hold up others. Once a drop is taken, one of us cannot play his original ball.
It may not be "by the rules," but it's our rule by agreement.

Did you know that in Match Play you can tee off from the 'wrong tee box' and not be penalized?

Happened at one of my son's junior Match play tournaments. A kid in the group ahead of his thought he was teeing off from the correct tee, until another kid pointed out a tee box 20 yards further back (after he had teed off). An elderly fellow rules guy came and said "loss of hole" and both kids proceeded down the fairway to the next hole. Usually, when I'm following my son I bring the rules book to look up the rule and asked the elderly fellow to point it to me....I go to the section he suggest and read something to the effect "if the player plays from the wrong tee, he may tee it up and play it again from the correct tee...." The guy almost had a heart attack, going down the fairway in his cart after those kids hoping the one who hit correctly didn't pick up his ball yet....lol.

Being a rules stickler it is clear that the rules of golf should always apply all the time. However, given course congestion, particularly at week ends, there seems to be a case for the development of a couple of amendments for non-tournament but club competition and "friendly" play. These are:

1. For a lost ball - if a ball is lost the player may drop a ball as close to the place where the ball is thought to be under penalty of two strokes i.e. if his drive is lost, he drops and plays 4.

2. Out of bounds

a. on the outer boundary, drop and play under 2 stroke penalty;
b. on estate courses where there are white stakes defining gardens etc., but which are within the confines of the estate - drop within 2 club lengths at the point the boundary is crossed under penalty of 1 stroke. (This is similar to the treatment in the case of a lateral water hazard)

If the OOB rule (b) is adopted then I suggest that the stakes are white with a red stripe to define such OOB areas.

Not only would these amendments speed up play but they would also ensure that no undue dvantage accrues to any player applying them.

This happened to me I was playing in a tournament and I hit a par 3 that barely escaped the water. So I hit a provisional before checking that landed on the green but since the ball was still in play in a line of sight (even though it was impossible to tell) your bound to play the provisional!