Dear Linda:
When can a LEAF RULE come into PLAY – before a
hole starts, or after a ball is LOST?
My partner lost a ball and he said he could
take a drop where he thought it would have STOPPED.
I said the LEAF RULE should start on the FIRST TEE!
What is the rule, if there is one?
Lou from Wildwood, New Jersey
Dear Lou,
Dear Lou,
Curiously enough, there is a leaf rule. If there are
temporary accumulations of leaves on the course, the Committee may adopt a
Local Rule declaring such accumulations ground under repair. The Rule should be
limited to those particular holes where trouble is known to exist [Decision
33-8/31].
If this Local Rule is in effect, players are entitled to
free relief under Rule 25-1. Note in particular that in order to claim that a
ball that is not found is actually lost in the leaves, there must be knowledge
or virtual certainty that the ball entered the pile of leaves [Rule 25-1c].
Without such knowledge or certainty, the ball must be treated as lost.
Addressing your specific questions…
1. If the Committee has adopted the “leaf rule,” it is in
effect for your entire round.
2. The player does not drop the ball where he estimates it
might have stopped. If he finds the ball, he drops it within one club-length of
the nearest point of relief that is no closer to the hole. If he does not find
it, his point of reference for dropping is the point where the ball last
crossed the outer limits of the accumulation of leaves. If the leaves are in a
bunker, free relief requires a drop in the bunker. [Rule 25-1b (ii) explains
how to find relief from GUR in a bunker].
Linda
Copyright © 2015 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
