Linda,
In
friendly competition today, my friend hit her ball over the water hazard with a
yellow line. It hit a tree over there and rolled along a line on the green side
of the line and eventually rolled back into the water hazard.
Must
she hit again from the teeing side of the hazard, or can she drop on the green
side of the hazard?
Thank
you for all your help,
Lulu
from Dallas, Texas
Dear
Lulu,
I
answered this question back in June of 2008. It is an important concept, and it
won’t hurt to revisit the answer. The ruling is still the same:
“If
you hit a ball over a water hazard that is marked entirely with yellow stakes
and the ball lands past the hazard boundary on the other side and then rolls
back into the hazard, you must drop that ball BEHIND the hazard. Perhaps the
best way to remember this is to ask yourself: Where is the ball? In this case,
it is in the water hazard. The relief options for a ball in a water hazard
require that you hit the ball across the hazard. Your point of reference for
taking relief is where the ball LAST crossed the margin of the hazard; that
reference point is on the green side of the hazard. Note where your ball rolled
back into the hazard; draw an imaginary line from the hole, through that point,
across the hazard and back as far as you wish; drop anywhere on that line, behind the hazard.”
Of
course, you may also play the ball under stroke and distance, or play it as it
lies in the hazard.
Linda
Copyright
© 2017 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
