Hi Linda,
Recently I was playing at Barnbougle Dunes in Tasmania. I
hit my ball into the face of a bunker from about 160m out. Luckily I saw
exactly where it pitched because when I got to the bunker the ball was nowhere
to be seen. There was however an unusual mark in the sand in the exact position
where I thought my ball had pitched. In order to identify my ball I literally
had to dig it out of the sand as it was buried about 2 inches under the
surface.
Whilst I know I am entitled to identify my ball, do I have
to cover it in sand again and return it back to the same condition I found it,
or can I simply place it back into the hole that I dug out in the process of
identifying the ball?
Thanks so much for your fantastic blog.
Regards,
Lou from Melbourne, Australia
Dear Lou,
You are permitted to touch and remove the sand in order to
find and identify your ball. There is no penalty if you move the ball during
this search. After you identify it, you must re-create the lie as best you can,
replace the ball, and re-cover it with sand. You are entitled to leave a small
part of the ball visible [Rule 12-1a].
Linda
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