Par4QC I've had that rule for years, outside of tournaments.
I'm with you. Playing a casual round you should never be punished for hitting the ball in the fairway. I am less sympathetic if you hit into a divot in the rough.
But, as you allude to, I'm perfectly fine playing the ball down in a competition... as long as we're all following the rules we agreed to before starting. Set the rules and don't put either player in position to inquire about relief.