Hi Linda,
I enjoy your posts regarding golf rules. I pride myself in
boasting to my colleagues about rules of golf that I learned from your website every
time we play.
We have a scenario where we do not know how to go about a
certain ruling. We are playing a par 4-hole 330 yards long. A creek or a pond
across the fairway is about 110 yards to the green. It is marked with red
stakes (lateral hazard). There is a designated drop area past the water hazard
located on the right side, 40 yards to the green. One of my fellow competitors,
who is a big hitter, can belt it more than 300 yards away. He says that if he
is going for the green hitting from the tee box and claims that if his drive
does not make it to the green and goes into the water hazard instead, he is
entitled to drop a ball in the drop area close to the green with a one-stroke
penalty. Is this correct? My other fellow competitors say that he should drop
two club-lengths from the point of entry where his ball entered the water with
a one-stroke penalty. Which is correct? Appreciate your response to clear the
matter for us. Thank you.
Lou from Toronto, Canada
Dear Lou,
One of the relief options for a ball in a lateral water
hazard is to drop within two club-lengths of the point where the ball last
crossed the margin of the hazard under penalty of one stroke [Rule 26-1c]. Your
fellow competitors are correct in mentioning this relief option.
The Committee has the option of establishing a Dropping Zone
(DZ) as an additional (or mandatory) relief option [Appendix I, Part A, #6]. I
have to assume that there was good reason to establish a DZ in the location
chosen by the Committee (one legitimate reason might be that there is no spot
to drop a ball within two club-lengths of the point where the ball last crossed
the margin of the hazard without dropping nearer to the hole). When the
Committee has designated a legitimate DZ, a player whose ball lies in the
hazard has the option to drop a ball in the DZ. The player in your scenario is
entitled to use the DZ.
If the configuration of the hazard is such that it is possible to drop a ball under the
requirements of Rule 26-1c, and you feel that the location of the DZ only 40
yards from the green is neither necessary nor fair, you should discuss your
concerns with the Committee. Perhaps they will explain the necessity of this DZ
to your satisfaction, or they might consider your objection and decide to
eliminate the DZ.
Linda
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