Provisional Throws Explained
Your drive sails toward the creek and disappears into tall grass. Nobody saw it land. Was it in? Is it lost? Is that marked area a hazard or relief? You could walk 300 feet to find out and walk all the way back, or the group could argue for ten minutes. Disc golf has a better option, and it’s one of the most useful (and most misused) rules in the book: the provisional throw, PDGA 809.02.
Related: Out of Bounds and Mandos · How to Mark Your Lie · Who Throws First · Disc Golf Scoring Terms · Tournament Caddie Book Basics.
What a provisional actually is
Under 809.02, provisional throws are an alternate sequence of throws starting from a different lie. You keep playing two versions of the hole, and only one of the two sequences counts in your final score. You keep both going until the hole is done or until a ruling decides which one is real.
Think of it as hedging the ruling, not the shot. You aren’t getting a mulligan; you’re making sure that whichever way the call goes, you already have a correct score and nobody has to walk back.
When you can take one
809.02 allows provisional throws in only three circumstances:
| Situation | What it looks like | Source |
|---|---|---|
| The rules are unclear, or the group disagrees on how to proceed | The hole notes don’t say whether a marked area is a hazard or a relief area | 809.02 |
| You intend to appeal a ruling | Your group calls you OB, you think you’re in, and no Official is around | 809.02, 801.03 |
| Your disc’s status is unknown, it might be lost, OB, or in a Required Relief Area, and a provisional will prevent backtracking | The drive flew out of sight near an OB line | 809.02 |
That third one has three parts, and all three have to be true. If you can clearly see your disc is in bounds, there’s nothing unknown, so there’s no provisional.
When you can’t take one
809.02 also names three situations where a provisional is not available, even if the conditions above seem to fit:
- A possibly missed mandatory. If the question is whether your disc went the wrong side of a mando, a provisional is off the table (see 804.01 and our mandos guide).
- You’re thinking about abandoning the throw. That’s a separate option under 809.01 Abandoned Throw: one penalty throw and you replay from the previous lie (or a designated drop zone). You can’t use a provisional to try it both ways.
- The only question is whether a penalty throw applies. If the lie is the same either way and the only argument is one stroke, you don’t throw anything extra. You appeal it under 801.03, which says plainly that if the lies are the same, no additional set of throws is made.
How to declare one (the part people skip)
To start a provisional sequence, 809.02 says you must do all three of these things in a way everyone in the group understands:
- Declare that you’re starting a provisional sequence.
- Explain why you’re starting it.
- Explain which sequence counts for which outcome.
Skip any of those and the consequence is real: provisional throws that don’t meet 809.02’s requirements are treated as practice throws under 809.03, which costs one penalty throw (the throw itself isn’t counted).
A clear declaration sounds something like this:
“I’m throwing a provisional because we can’t tell if my drive is OB past the fence. If it’s in bounds, I play my original disc. If it’s OB, this provisional is my third throw.”
Say it before you throw, say it out loud, and make sure the person keeping your card heard it.
A worked example, straight from the PDGA
The PDGA’s own Rules Q&A (QA-PRO-2) walks through this one. Your tee shot lands in a marked area, and the hole notes don’t make it clear whether that area is a hazard or a required relief area. You step up and announce two sets of provisionals: the first applies if it’s a hazard (so that throw would be your third), the second applies if it’s relief (so that throw would be your second). You play both out and note your two possible scores (a 5 if it’s a hazard, a 4 if it’s relief in the Q&A’s example). After the round, your group checks with an Official to settle which score goes on the card.
Notice what made it work: everyone knew which sequence was which before a single provisional throw left anyone’s hand.
How provisionals tie into appeals
Under 801.03, you can appeal warnings, penalties, or group decisions to an Official (and an Official’s decision to the Tournament Director) by clearly and promptly saying so to your group. Then:
- If an Official is readily available, the group can step aside and let other groups play through while the appeal is heard.
- If no Official is readily available, you can play a set of provisional throws and appeal later, when it’s practical.
- If the ruling is overturned, an Official can adjust your score to match the correct interpretation, or have you replay one or more holes.
- Tournament Director rulings are final. An incorrect TD ruling stands unless the TD corrects it.
There’s also a spotter wrinkle in 801.03: if the group gets to the disc and decides a Tournament Spotter’s signal was wrong, play continues from the lie the group rules on, and throws based on the spotter’s incorrect signal are disregarded. If you disagree with the group, you can appeal and keep the original sequence going as a provisional.
A few related answers from the PDGA Q&A worth knowing:
- Group calls aren’t “benefit of the doubt.” That phrase isn’t in the rules. Your group makes the call on whether your disc is in bounds; you can briefly give your opinion, then let them decide (QA-APP-4).
- You own playing the course correctly. If your group calls you safe and you were actually OB, the Q&A still says you’re responsible for playing the course properly. If you disagree with the group and no Official is around, play a provisional and let the TD rule later (QA-APP-5).
- You can appeal a ruling on someone else in your group. The affected player may then choose to play provisionals (QA-APP-3).
Scoring both sequences
Keep it simple on the card: write both possible scores for the hole, clearly labeled with which outcome each belongs to, and confer with an Official to settle which one counts, the same way the Q&A example does after the round. Our scorekeeping guide covers card responsibilities and submission timing under PDGA 808.
In a casual round
Nobody needs an Official at a Tuesday putting league, but the provisional habit still saves time: if a drive might be lost near the road, throw a provisional from the tee before you walk. Just say what it’s for first, so it doesn’t turn into a free second drive.
Where to read the rules yourself
- PDGA 809.02 Provisional Throw
- PDGA 801.03 Appeals
- PDGA 809.01 Abandoned Throw
- PDGA 809.03 Practice Throw
- PDGA Rules Questions and Answers (QA-PRO-1, QA-PRO-2, QA-APP-3 through QA-APP-5)
Rules checked against pdga.com on 2026-10-12 (809.02 last updated Dec 31, 2025; 801.03 last updated Aug 14, 2026). The PDGA updates its rules most years, so confirm the current text before you settle a dispute on the card.