Linda, before a stroke play tournament, a large, diseased tree fell in
the middle of the fairway and near the green. In order to remove it, a tractor
type piece of equipment was brought in. Due to damp conditions, ruts were left
by the tractor’s tires.
Although they are not marked as GUR, is relief granted if a
ball is resting in these ruts? We can’t decide if Decision 25/16 addresses this
or not. Thanks, we enjoy your column.
Lou from Texas
Dear Lou,
Decision 25/16 explains that a Committee may declare a deep
rut caused by greenkeeping equipment to be ground under repair (GUR); if the
rut is shallow, it should not be marked as GUR.
For argument’s sake, let’s agree that this was a deep rut,
eligible for a GUR designation. The Committee should make every effort to mark
the area as GUR, or to at least notify players that a ball lying in the deep
ruts on Hole # such-and-such is lying in GUR.
If the area has not been marked, and the players have not
received notification of the GUR status, the players may invoke Rule 3-3 and
play two balls – the original as it lies in the GUR and a second ball dropped
in accordance with the relief options provided for a ball in GUR in Rule 25-1b.
The player must tell his marker or fellow competitor that he is invoking Rule
3-3 before he hits either ball, and
state which ball he wishes to count (if the procedure is correct for that
ball).
At the end of the round (or during the round, if a
tournament official is available to make a ruling), the player will explain to
the Committee that he believed his ball to lie in GUR. A member of the
Committee will inspect the area, make a determination, and rule which ball
counts.
In your situation, where the ruts were made prior to the
start of the tournament, it would save all the players time and aggravation
(and make the tournament more equitable, since not all players would
necessarily be aware of their option to play two balls) if the Committee made
their determination and communicated their decision to the competitors before
the start of play.
Linda
Copyright © 2014 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
