I think there is an option now where you drop in the fairway at the point the ball went OB and incur a two shot penalty. Others may know the details better than I. You can still go back and play it again with a one shot penalty if you prefer.

There is that option, usually covered by a local rule to speed up play.

There is an option, a local rule according to the USGA:

If you hit your ball out of bounds or lose it (you have three minutes to search for your ball before it becomes lost), your only option is to go back to the spot of your previous stroke to play under stroke and distance. The only exceptions to this are if your ball is lost in a penalty area (when you can use any of the penalty area relief options) or lost in an abnormal ground condition or in an obstruction.

A final exception is when a new Local Rule which provides an alternative to stroke and distance relief is in effect. This Local Rule is recommended for casual play and not for competitions involving highly-skilled players. If it is in effect, for two penalty strokes, you can estimate the spot where your ball is lost or went out of bounds and then find the nearest fairway edge that is not nearer the hole than the estimated spot. You can drop a ball in the fairway within two club-lengths of that fairway edge point, or anywhere between there and the estimated spot where your ball is lost or went out of bounds. The Local Rule is appropriate for general play where golfers are playing casual rounds or playing their own competitions. The Local Rule is not appropriate for competitions limited to highly skilled players (that is, professional competitions and elite amateur competitions). For guidance on when and how this Local Rule may be used in order for scores to be submitted for handicapping purposes, consult the rules or recommendations contained within the Handicap System operating in the local jurisdiction.

If you think that your ball might be out bounds or that you might not find it, you can play a provisional ball to save time. You must announce that you are playing a provisional ball before doing so. If you are then unable to find your original ball, or you find it out of bounds, your provisional ball is your ball in play under stroke and distance, and you don’t have to take the time to walk all the way back to the spot of your previous stroke. Click here to learn more about playing a provisional ball.

Thanks for the thorough explanation Chuck!

You are correct Guy. I believe there was a change in the rules a couple of years ago which allows for the drop with a 2 shot penalty and it was intended to speed up play. I still run into players who are not familiar with the rule. During a casual round, it just makes sense to do the drop IMO.

And adding the part mentioned by others above. It's not a overarching rule. It must be adopted as a "local rule" option. Great for casual play but make sure if you play in anything competitive that says they play by the USGA rules, you confirm that the course and local officials for that event have adopted the rule. If not, you must play the old "stroke and distance" penalty. Cheers!

Just cut and pasted the explanation. The rule book is there to help out and local rules clause is intended to speed up play. USGA can get wordy in their explanations, sometimes. Always carry their book in my bag, just in case something comes up.

Golf is not supposed to be fair That OOB doesn’t have the same penalty as unplayable hazards seems a little more unfair. The rule was written before courses are greenways through residential neighborhoods. I play some state association events and have to take the stroke and distance. It would be nice to have the 2 stroke option not just be a local rule. Which we can do now with bunkers.

It's a rule designed to penalize you a bit more for hitting the ball off the course, as opposed to simply in a hazard that is considered part of the playing area.

I wonder if that really speeds up play depending on the drop. If you hit a second provisional and it is in the middle and a good lie and you would actually have a better lie. You would be hitting be hitting four from there also. Guess it depends on the level of the player on speeding up play. Sometimes folks like to spend more than three minutes looking for their ball when it goes out of bounds.

Played in our City of Charleston interclub matches yesterday. OMG, No worries, it seems, they have finally gotten the matches down to five hours. Waited on one hole 25 minutes for our turn to hit. NOT. So much for tempo. So much for local rules. Host course had no one on course speeding up play. We have twelve teams that play a different course each month and collect points based on finish each match and winner take all at end of year. ZZZZ