New for 2008, the U.S.G.A. has changed a ruling when your golf ball is in a hazard. Previously, if you found a golf ball in a hazard and thought that it was yours, but were not able to properly identify the golf ball, you were still able to play the stroke. If after playing the stroke you noticed that this was not your ball, no penalty stroke was incurred. Now the U.S.G.A. has ruled that you must first identify your golf ball in a hazard before playing a shot.