Dear Linda,
My ball was playable in a water hazard except I couldn’t swing because a bridge over the hazard was in the way. Can I get free relief?
Lulu
Dear Lulu,
There is no free relief from an immovable obstruction in a hazard [Rule 24-2b]. If your swing is blocked by the bridge, you must assess yourself a penalty stroke and proceed under one of the relief options provided in the water hazard rule [Rule 26-1].
Note that obstructions, which are man-made objects, come in two varieties – immovable, such as a bridge; and movable, such as a rake. While there is no relief in a hazard for interference from an immovable obstruction, there is free relief from a movable one [Rule 24-1].
Let’s look at the case of a retaining wall in a hazard constructed with stone. This man-made wall, by definition, would be an immovable obstruction. If your ball settles near the wall, and you are unable to swing, there is no free relief. However, suppose a chunk of stone has broken off the wall and fallen into the hazard, and your ball has settled right on or next to it. That chunk of stone would be defined as a movable obstruction; you would be entitled to move it [Decision 24/6]. Here is how you would proceed:
1. If the ball is next to the stone, you may remove the stone. If moving the stone causes your ball to move, replace the ball [Rule 24-1a].
2. If the ball is on the stone, lift the ball and remove the stone, then drop the ball as close as possible on the spot under the stone [Rule 24-1b].
Getting back to the subject of a bridge crossing a water hazard, let’s look at the case of a ball that settles on a bridge [Decision 13-4/30]. The bridge, as you now know, is an immovable obstruction. Since it crosses a hazard, it is an immovable obstruction in a hazard, from which there is no free relief. However, because it is an obstruction, you are permitted to ground your club on the bridge. While you are prohibited from touching the ground in a hazard with your club [Rule 13-4b], you may ground your club on the bridge because the bridge is above the ground!
Linda
Copyright © 2009 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
