Ask Linda #600-Hit original unknowingly

Dear Linda,

A playing partner played a provisional ball off the tee as he suspected he might not find his original in the rough.

He found & played what he believed was his provisional ball, but afterwards discovered his provisional ball further along. He then only realized that the ball he had just played was in fact his original ball.

As the ball he actually played was his original, is there any penalty or should he count it as his 4th shot as he would have for his real provisional ball?

Thanks!

Lou from Dublin, Ireland

Dear Lou,

No penalty. The player violated no Rule. However, I am once again mystified as to why players continually fail to identify a golf ball before they hit it. It only takes a moment to check the ball, and it helps avoid all sorts of complications, questions, and potential rules violations.

Linda

Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #599a-Snow on the green

Hi Linda,

Thanks again for your very helpful blog. Another query for you. In a competition recently it started snowing during the competition. Towards the end of this competition some snow started to lie on the greens to a depth of about 3-4 mm. My query is this: can a competitor remove the snow on the green to form a path between his/her ball and the hole? If so, what can be used to make this path? – the back of one's hand, a putter or even the back of a bunker rake? What happens to the condition that the green is left in, with ridges of snow?

As soon as the snow started settling on the greens, should the Competitions Committee have abandoned the competition?

Yours thankfully,

Lou from the UK

Dear Lou,

Snow can be treated as casual water or a loose impediment [Definition of Casual Water; Definition of Loose Impediments]. In your scenario, you would want to treat the snow as a loose impediment. You may brush the snow away, providing you do not press anything down on your line of putt [Rule 16-1a]. Your best bets for a tool would be your hand, hat, glove, or towel. I would not recommend the back of a rake, since it might prove difficult to remove the snow without pressing anything down.

I would not presume to recommend what the Committee should do. With such a small amount of snow, and the tournament near the end, the Committee might be inclined to complete the tournament. The determining factor should be whether the competition would be fair. The USGA recommends that a tournament be canceled only if “it would be grossly unfair not to cancel it” [Decision 33-2d/1]. Committees are expected to use good judgment.

Linda

Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #599-Sand outside bunker

Greetings Linda–

At a local golf course, the machine used to groom the bunker pulls sand out onto the lip and beyond.

My questions are:

1. What is considered in and out of the bunker?

2. Is sand pulled from the bunker in the grooming process ground under repair?

3.Can you ground your club on sand that is outside a bunker but was once in the bunker?

Looking forward to your answer.

Lou from Kansas City

Dear Lou,

The photo you sent me is of a traditional bunker–a hollowed-out area filled with sand surrounded by grass-covered ground. Here are the answers to your questions:

1. A ball is in the bunker when any part of it touches the sand in the bunker. Sand lying outside the bunker (on the grass-covered ground) is not in the bunker, so a ball lying on such sand is not in the bunker.

2. Sand pulled out of a bunker is not ground under repair. You must play your ball as it lies, and you may not brush the sand away. Sand is a loose impediment only when it lies on the putting green.

3. You may ground your club on the sand that is outside the bunker.

Linda

Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #598-Hazard questions

Linda–

I have been looking at the Note at the end of Rule 13-4. It is difficult to understand how the term "at any time" is used to describe the ability to touch any grass, bush or growing thing in a hazard.

Also, there's no such thing as addressing a ball in a bunker now, so is the definition of "address" only needed when mentioning ball movement? Does one always address a ball to strike it, even in a bunker? Does it mean that if the ball moves –not caused by the player– the player is not implicated?

I would appreciate your thoughts to help us all understand the Rules better!

Thanks,

Lulu from Northern Ireland

Dear Lulu,

A player is permitted to touch any grass, bush, tree, or other growing thing in a hazard. What she is not permitted to touch is the ground. So if you brush the top of the grass while taking a practice “air swing,” or contact a bush in the process of trying to hit your ball, there is no penalty [Decision 13-4/4]. Don’t confuse this with contacting a loose impediment in a hazard, which is not permitted. If you move a pinecone or a leaf on your backswing (both being loose impediments), you will incur a two-stroke penalty.

A ball has been “addressed” when the player grounds her club in front of or behind the ball [Definition of Addressing the Ball]. Since a player is not permitted to ground her club in a bunker or water hazard, a player cannot address her ball in a hazard without incurring a two-stroke penalty [Decision 18-2b/2]. If the player takes her stance in a hazard, and the ball subsequently moves, it must be established what caused the ball to move. If it was the player, there is a one-stroke penalty and ball must be replaced. If there was another cause (e.g., wind, water), there is no penalty [Decision 18-2b/3].

Linda

Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #597- Stance in GUR

Hi Linda,

Can a player stand inside a GUR to take a shot at their ball, which is outside the white GUR line?

Lulu

Dear Lulu,

A player may stand in ground under repair (GUR) to hit a ball outside the GUR. A player may also stand outside GUR to hit a ball lying in the GUR. And a player may stand in GUR to hit a ball that lies in the GUR.

While there are free relief procedures available if a player’s ball lies in GUR or if GUR interferes with a player’s stance or swing, there is no requirement that a player seek relief. You may play the ball as it lies – relief is optional.

If the Committee wishes to prohibit play from GUR, it may adopt Local Rule 2a [Appendix I, Part B]. A Committee might elect to prohibit play if, for example, an area marked as GUR has been newly seeded. When Local Rule 2a is in effect, all play is prohibited from a specific area or areas of GUR; a player would not be permitted to stand in the GUR to hit a ball lying outside the GUR.

Linda

Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.

Ask Linda #596-Unplayable in bunker

Dear Linda,

This came up in play yesterday. I know that you can take an unplayable lie wherever you deem appropriate, but this question stumped both of us.

How do you proceed, if you take an unplayable lie in a sand bunker after several failed attempts to get the ball out? Is the player still permitted to drop the ball from where she first hit it into the bunker or would she have to proceed under one of the other options and drop inside the bunker because her last three strokes were in the bunker? Also, what is the rule number?

Thanks,

Lulu

Dear Lulu,

First, let me clarify that a player may declare her ball unplayable anywhere on the golf course except in a water hazard.

There are three relief options for a ball that is unplayable in a bunker [Rule 28]. Adding a one-stroke penalty, the player may:

1. play a ball under stroke and distance (I will elaborate below);

2. drop a ball in the bunker on the line-of-sight to the hole; or

3. drop a ball in the bunker, within two club-lengths, no closer to the hole.

Choice #1 permits the player to play another ball from the spot where she hit her previous shot. In most instances, the previous shot was taken outside the bunker. However, in your scenario, the player’s previous shot was taken inside the bunker. If she declares her ball unplayable after taking several strokes in the bunker, she is entitled to all three options, but all of them will be in the bunker. The Rule references are 28a (Ball Unplayable) and 27-1a (Proceeding Under Stroke and Distance).

If the player is having trouble negotiating a high lip, she may want to consider turning around and chipping the ball out backwards.

Linda

Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.