Linda,
One of our league members told us about her bunker
situation: during a friendly game of golf, her ball landed in a deep bunker on
the upslope. Just above where her ball laid, there was a dandelion hanging over
and down the lip. More than likely the weed would have interfered with her shot
out of the bunker. She pulled the weed. She wanted to know if that was against
any rule. Many of us told her that she should not have pulled the weed and
because she did, she should have incurred a one-stroke penalty.
What is the ruling on a situation like this? Thanks for your
time.
Lulu from New Prague, Minnesota
Dear Lulu,
The player is not allowed to improve her lie, the area of
her stance or swing, or her line of play by moving, bending, or breaking
anything that is growing. The player incurs a two-stroke penalty (loss of hole in match play) under Rule 13-2. This
penalty applies everywhere on the golf course except the teeing ground.
The player is permitted to create or eliminate
irregularities on the surface of the
teeing ground. This means she is permitted, for example, to pull out grass
or weeds lying behind or near her ball [Decision 13-2/3]. However, she may not
break branches off a tree that overhangs the teeing ground; branches attached
to a tree are not an irregularity of the ground surface [Decision 13-2/14].
Linda
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