Is there another sport where protocol and rules compliance is so frequently broken, or discussed, or (gulp) accepted?  So long as I have nothing at stake I tend to have little or no regard as to whether my fellow golfers choose to play by the rules.  I am more likely find a tactful way of getting them in line if they demonstrate cluelessness toward the application of reasonable protocol, especially if the situation becomes painfully embarrassing. 

But should this be the case?  In baseball, three strikes & you're out, if you step on the line with the pig skin you don't get the touch down, and three of a kind beats two pair.  That's that, and you don't get away with calling it a mulligan.  Maybe we should ease up to these guys and just quietly ask, "what the hell are you doing?"  Or better yet, establish on the first tee that all penalties are doubled if someone else has to call you on it.  To harsh?  Well, if not for the rules of the game, the "game" doesn't exist.  In the end I have accepted that it is my choice to accept a second trip around the loop with these guys or not.  As for me, the answer is simple.  If I am not steadfast in my adherence to the rules of the game, how do I know if I'm really getting any better or not?  And most importantly, when I better my best score to date, I have forfeited that true deep feeling of accomplishment and pride if I know that I cheated to attain it.  Now THAT would piss me off more that anything another player could do.