Thanks Linda,
This is very very very interesting. I have a question or two
about this matter. You said that I can have free relief if a branch interferes
with my swing, but is it valid also if my ball lies in a water hazard or even
out of bounds? If the tree is used as GUR delimiter, thus it's half in and half
out, should I consider it all in?
As usual, thank you very much for your kind reply.
Lou, an Italian living in the Czech Republic
Dear Lou,
You are entitled to free relief from a branch of a tree
growing in ground under repair (GUR) that extends past the margin of the GUR
because you are entitled to free relief from GUR.
There is no free relief from GUR if your ball lies in a
water hazard. If your ball lies out of bounds, you are required to hit another
ball under stroke and distance.
Dear Linda,
Wait a minute! The GUR extends downward, but doesn't include
tree roots? I'm confused.
Thanks!
Lulu from Maryland
Dear Lulu,
The ground under repair (GUR) does not extend downwards; the
margin of the GUR extends downwards.
Nothing beyond the margin at ground level or below is in the GUR.
Linda,
Question: If the limbs extend say ten feet past your ball in
the example you gave, is that where the GUR ends? Do you then have one
club length before you drop (no closer to the hole)?
Lou from Reno, Nevada
Dear Lou,
No, that is not where the GUR ends. If the branch of the
tree growing in GUR interferes with your swing, you would have to find the
nearest point of relief and drop within one club-length of that point, no
closer to the hole. That nearest point of relief might be behind the branch,
closer to the margin of the GUR. “Nearest” means “nearest.” Remember that you
are only entitled relief for your stance and the area of your intended
swing. There is no free relief if the branch interferes on your line of play.
Linda, I am puzzled regarding your GUR “Rules Nugget.”
Did you state the clarified rule incorrectly, or are your examples
incorrect?
If “the margin of ground under repair extends
vertically downwards but not upward,” wouldn't you get relief from extended
roots (downward), but not from overhanging tree branches (upward)?
I share all your info with my ladies league, but will wait
on this one...
Lulu from Stillwater, Oklahoma
Dear Lulu,
It would seem that you are confused about the meaning of “margin”
as it applies to golf. Let’s see what I can do to provide some clarity.
We all know now that the margin of ground under repair (GUR)
extends vertically downwards. Picture an imaginary area of GUR that is
perfectly round and has a five-foot diameter. Take a five-foot cylinder that is
very thin and place it on the outer edge of the white line that marks the
margin of the GUR. Hammer that cylinder into the ground until the top of the
cylinder is flush with the ground. We now have a physical object (the cylinder)
that defines the downward margin.
• Everything on the
ground at the level of the top of the cylinder (which is level with the
ground) that is outside the cylinder
is outside the GUR.
• Everything below
the ground, outside the cylinder,
is outside the GUR.
• Everything that is growing
within the cylinder is part of the GUR.
Since the margin does not extend upwards, anything growing
in the cylinder that extends past the cylinder above the ground is still part
of the GUR. Thus, when a tree is growing in GUR, any branches that extend
outside the cylinder are still part of the GUR. The margin of GUR does not
extend upwards.
Linda
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