A mulligan is a do-over: after a bad shot, you play again without a penalty, as if the first shot never happened. It is a casual custom among friends and is not part of the Rules of Golf, so it cannot be used in any official competition. Another informal arrangement often seen in friendly games is to drop near where a ball went out of bounds and carry on with one penalty stroke instead of going back to replay. Both are ways of keeping a casual round fun and moving, and both differ from what the Rules actually say.
What is a mulligan?
A mulligan lets you cancel a poor shot and play it again with no penalty. It is a custom agreed among playing partners, and the word is understood by golfers almost everywhere.
Common versions include:
- The first tee shot only. This allows for first-tee nerves and a body that has not warmed up yet, and is often called a “breakfast ball”.
- One per nine, or another fixed number that can be used anywhere on the course.
- Tee shots only, never for second shots or later.
When you take a mulligan, the original shot is treated as if it never happened and you continue with the second ball. The usual convention is that you must play the second ball even if the first one finished in a better spot. If you could pick the better of the two, it would simply become a two-ball option.
Where the word mulligan comes from
There are several stories. The best known is that of David B. Mulligan, who played at a golf club near Montreal, Canada, in the 1920s and was allowed to hit a second tee shot after a poor first one, and the practice spread from there. Another story credits a different Mulligan at a golf club in New Jersey in the United States. Nobody knows for certain which is true.
Dropping near where the ball went out for one stroke
Some groups go a step further than a mulligan. When a ball goes out of bounds or cannot be found, they do not walk back and replay it. Instead they drop near where the ball went out (or was lost) and carry on with one penalty stroke. In Japan this arrangement is common enough to have its own name, “wanpena” (one penalty).
- It is used for balls that go out of bounds or are lost.
- Some groups also use it for balls hit into dense trees or over a drop-off where there are no boundary stakes.
Under the Rules, a ball out of bounds or lost costs one penalty stroke and you replay from where you last played. If your tee shot goes out of bounds, you hit your third shot from the tee (see our article on out of bounds and provisional balls). Dropping forward for one stroke gives you back the lost distance while keeping the penalty at one stroke, so your score will usually be lower than under the actual Rules.
How these compare with the Rules of Golf
Putting mulligans and the one-stroke drop next to the Rules and to local rules set by a course makes the differences clear.
| Method | Status | When a tee shot goes out of bounds |
|---|---|---|
| Rules of Golf (stroke and distance) | Rules of Golf | One penalty stroke, replay from the tee. Next stroke is the third |
| Local Rule E-5 | A local rule allowed by the Rules. Only when the course or organizer adopts it | Two penalty strokes, drop between where the ball went out and the fairway. Next stroke is the fourth |
| Forward tee for out of bounds | An arrangement made by individual courses (mainly in Japan and Korea) | Fourth stroke from the special tee |
| Drop forward for one stroke | Informal arrangement among players | One penalty stroke, drop near where it went out. Next stroke is the third |
| Mulligan | Informal arrangement among players | Replay from the tee with no penalty. Next stroke is the second |
Local Rule E-5, introduced in 2019, is similar to the informal drop in that you play from near where the ball went out, but the penalty is two strokes. Two strokes was chosen so that the result is roughly the same as replaying from the tee and hitting a good shot.
If you use mulligans or a one-stroke drop in a competition played under the Rules and hand in that score, you have returned a score lower than your actual one, and you can be disqualified. When a round is going to be submitted for your handicap, play it without them.
Setting the house rules for a golf day
If you plan to allow mulligans or a one-stroke drop at a friendly golf day, the most important thing is to tell everyone the same rules before the start. If each group handles them differently, the results are not fair. The organizer should decide:
- Whether mulligans are allowed, and if so how many and for which shots (tee shots only, or anywhere).
- Whether the one-stroke drop is allowed, and whether it covers only out of bounds or lost balls and balls in the trees too.
- On holes where the course has a forward tee for out of bounds, which option players should use.
- Whether a ball played as a mulligan can win a prize on longest drive or closest to the pin holes.
- How strokes count for one-day handicap formats such as Double Peoria.
Mulligans do have an upside: they can speed up play. Allowing one mulligan can be quicker than everyone walking back to replay after every out of bounds. Another time-saving custom is the gimme, where a very short putt is counted as holed without being played (see etiquette around the green).
How official local rules differ
Informal house rules are easily confused with local rules that a course adopts officially. For example, when the fairways are in poor condition, a course may allow you to lift, clean and place your ball within a short distance (often called preferred lies or “winter rules”). This is based on a Model Local Rule from the R&A and USGA and is fully legitimate when the course or organizer has adopted it. Unlike mulligans or the one-stroke drop, it is relief within the Rules. Check the scorecard or the notices at the starter for which local rules are in effect.
Agreeing on house rules with players you do not know
Because the word mulligan is so widely known, asking “Mulligans on the first tee?” is usually all it takes. The one-stroke drop has no single common name, so explain what you mean, for example “Can we just drop where it went out and take one shot penalty?” When you join playing partners in Indonesia, Thailand or Malaysia, there will usually be no special forward tee for out of bounds, so agree how out of bounds will be handled before you tee off to avoid disputes (see golf terms that do not work abroad).