Dear readers,
I received three responses questioning whether the reader’s
ball in Ask Linda #609a might actually be in the bunker, which would deny him
free relief for an embedded ball.
The reader’s question seemed theoretical to me – he was
asking about a potential event, not an actual one. I assumed his “theoretical
ball” was not in the bunker, but that may have been a faulty assumption.
Since three very rules-savvy readers questioned the location
of the ball, let’s pause a moment and consider the Definition of “Bunker.”
We all know that a bunker is a special area where turf has
been removed and replaced with sand. I mentioned in #609a that any
grass-covered ground in a bunker is not part of the bunker; nor is a stacked
turf face. If your ball is embedded in either area, and the Local Rule giving
free relief for a ball embedded through the green is in effect, you would be
entitled to a free drop.
However, if the wall or lip of the bunker is not covered
with grass, it is part of the bunker. It wouldn’t matter that the original sand
had slipped away with time, leaving only dirt. A ball embedded in dirt in the
wall or lip of a bunker is in the
bunker, and there would be no free
relief. The player could try to hit it, or declare it unplayable and
proceed under one of the relief options in Rule 28 (includes a one-stroke
penalty). Don’t forget that if you are taking relief for an unplayable ball in
a bunker, both the two-club-length relief or the line-of-sight relief must be
in the bunker. The only relief option that will get you out of the bunker is to
hit a ball from where you hit your previous shot (stroke and distance).
You must establish whether your ball is in a bunker before
you can decide what rules will govern your actions. When in doubt, assume it is
in the bunker – better to incur an unnecessary one-stroke penalty than to be
disqualified for failing to include a penalty stroke in your score.
Linda
Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
