What is a mud ball in golf? And how do you play one?

PGA Championship officials raised eyebrows on Wednesday when they announced that they wouldn’t be playing preferred lies on day one at Quail Hollow.

Before the tournament got underway, rain battered the North Carolina course, leaving fairways sodden. As is often the case, wet fairways make for one of the most frustrating things in golf.

Mud balls.

It even led to the world No.1, Scottie Scheffler, delivering an uncharacteristic rant about the course conditions at Quail Hollow.

“I hit in the middle of the fairway, you’ve got mud on your ball and it’s tough to control where it goes after that,” Scheffler said following an opening round of 69.

“It’s frustrating to hit the ball in the middle of the fairway and get mud on it and have no idea where it’s going to go.

“You spend your whole life trying to learn how to control a golf ball and due to a rules decision, all of a sudden you have absolutely no control over where that golf ball goes.

“But I don’t make the rules. I just have to deal with the consequences of those rules.”

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Other pros were also finding the mud ball to be a problem. Michael Kim, who shot a solid opening round of even par, posted on X to say that he had five “nasty” mud balls in his first round. Ouch.

Thoughts from PGA (thur)

-MUD BALLS (had 5 nasty ones)
-Played the par 5s 2 over… one bogey because of a poor tee shot and let’s not talk about 10… 😅😂
-Back is improving but still can’t quite swing it the way I want and leading to some pull draws as I go over the top to…

— Michael S. Kim (@Mike_kim714) May 15, 2025

How do you play a mud ball in golf?

As with a lot of golf shots, there’s an element of luck involved. Mud on your ball is a variable that you can account for, but the size of the clump of mud and its exact place on your ball will give different ball flights each time.

However, the general rule of thumb, is that wherever the mud is on your ball, the flight will err in the opposite direction. For example…

• Mud on right of ball; ball will fly left
• Mud on left of ball; ball will fly right
• Mud on top of ball; ball will fly lower
• Mud on bottom of ball; ball will fly higher

The question of how much you should account for this really depends on how big the clump of mud is and how long your approach shot is. The more mud and the longer the shot, the more of an impact you’re likely to see.

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But, again, it’s not an exact science. And that’s why Scheffler and his peers were frustrated that preferred lies (lift, clean and place) wasn’t in play.

Is that the last that we’ve seen of mud balls at the PGA Championship? According to Kim in the same post on X, it’s not likely.

“Did I mention mud balls? It’s prob going to get worse tomorrow,” he said.

In the history of major golf, only one round, the final day at 2016 PGA Championship, has played preferred lies. Pros at Quail Hollow will be hoping that number increases this week.

Lewis Fraser As bunkered’s Performance Editor, Lewis oversees the content that’s designed to make you a better player. From the latest gear to tuition, nutrition, strategy and more, he’s the man. A graduate of the University of Stirling, Lewis joined bunkered in 2021. Formerly a caddie at Castle Stuart Golf Links, he is a member of Bathgate Golf Club where he plays off four.

Performance Editor