Ask Linda #148-Dropped ball rolls forward

Dear Linda,
If, when taking a drop behind a water hazard or when taking an unplayable, the ball moves forward does it have to be re-dropped? I know you can drop a ball twice and if it rolls closer to the hole it can be placed where the ball struck the ground on the second drop. But does it have to be re-dropped if when the ball moves forward it is still behind the point of the original relief?
Lou Lou

Dear Lou Lou,

This is an excellent question, and it was addressed in a USGA rules seminar I attended. The rules state that a ball must be re-dropped when it rolls and comes to rest closer to the hole, “unless otherwise permitted by the Rules” (Rule 20-2/c/vii/a). I asked the instructor for an example of a dropped ball rolling closer to the hole that does not have to be re-dropped, and the answer he gave was the exact situation you describe.

One of the relief options for a ball in a water hazard or a ball that is unplayable allows you to drop a ball, under penalty of one stroke, anywhere behind where your ball lays on a line that begins at the hole, passes through your ball, and extends back to infinity. If you choose this relief option, do not re-drop the ball if it should roll forward, closer to the hole. As long as it does not roll closer to the hole than where your ball originally lay, it is a legal drop.

Linda

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