Good afternoon Linda,
If a glass bottle is so close to my ball that I could
actually hit the bottle, and the ball is in a hazard, am I allowed to remove
the bottle, providing I do not move the ball?
Kind regards
Lou from Greenvale, Victoria, Australia
Dear Lou,
The answer to this question lies in understanding the
difference between a loose impediment and an obstruction.
Loose impediments are natural objects, such as leaves,
twigs, branches, dung, insects, worms, and the like. When your ball lies in a
hazard, you are not permitted to touch or move a loose impediment lying in or
touching the hazard [Rule 13-4c].
Obstructions are artificial objects. “Artificial” means
“man-made.” Fences, stakes, bottles, food wrappers, paper cups, rakes, etc.,
are all obstructions. The player is always entitled to free relief from movable obstructions,
even when his ball lies in a hazard; the player is entitled to free relief from immovable obstructions everywhere except when his ball lies in a water hazard.
If the obstruction is movable, you may remove it. If removal of the object causes the ball to move, the ball must be replaced [Rule 24-1a]. If the ball lies on the movable obstruction, you may lift the ball and remove the obstruction, after which you must drop the ball. On a putting green you would place the ball [Rule 24-1b].
If the obstruction is movable, you may remove it. If removal of the object causes the ball to move, the ball must be replaced [Rule 24-1a]. If the ball lies on the movable obstruction, you may lift the ball and remove the obstruction, after which you must drop the ball. On a putting green you would place the ball [Rule 24-1b].
The answer to your question, as you can now see, is “yes.”
You may remove the bottle from the hazard. And if your ball were touching the
bottle, and the ball moved when you lifted the bottle, you would simply replace
the ball – no penalty.
Linda
Copyright © 2017 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
