Dear Linda,
More to your #609b [Is the ball in the bunker?]. We have
rabbits at our golf course. Probably 3 times more rabbits (the 4-footed
lop-eared furry ones) than members. They dig burrows in the edges of our bunkers.
One of our fellows found his ball about a foot into one of these, well under
the surrounding turf. He took relief from the rabbit scrape by dropping his
ball on the turf above where he had found it. Neat, I thought, but perhaps not
the right course.
I’d love to know where you and the Rules stand on this one.
All the best to you,
Lou
Dear Lou,
It may surprise you to learn that the player proceeded
correctly. Although his ball entered the burrow through the bunker, it is not
in the bunker, since it was found in the burrow underneath turf. The player is
entitled to free relief for a ball in an
abnormal ground condition. He may drop the ball within one club-length of the
point that is nearest to the spot where it lay in the burrow that is not in a
hazard, on a putting green, or closer to the hole [Rule 25-1b (i); Decision
25-1b/25]. If he cannot recover the ball, he may substitute another one.
Linda
Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
