Jim Kormondy's Rule of the Week Archives |
Click on the rule that you want to review. RELIEF OPTIONS FOR TEE SHOTS HIT INTO WATER FROM THE MEN'S TEE ON HOLE #12 |
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There is no such thing in the Rules of Golf as "line of flight" relief. There are instances where you may take relief on a line. That line, however, is from the flagstick back, not on the line that the ball took to get where it is. When you hit into a water hazard, you may chose to drop on a line going from the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard. You may go back on this line as far as you desire. When you declare your ball unplayable, you may chose to drop your ball on a similar line. This line goes from the hole through the point where the ball lies. Again, you may go as far back as you desire (except for when your ball lies in a bunker, in this case you must stay in the bunker). Another time I here "line of flight relief" is when an imovable obstruction lies between a golfer's ball and the hole. The belief is that relief is granted for this situation. However, the only relief given for immovable obstructions is when the obstruction interferes with the golfer's stance or the area of his intended swing. RELIEF OPTIONS FOR TEE SHOTS HIT INTO WATER FROM THE MEN'S TEE ON HOLE #12 When teeing off on hole #12 from the whit or the blue tees there are two types of water hazards that come into play. As you can see on the drawing below, the two types ogf hazards are defined by two different color lines. The red line indicates a lateral water hazard. The yellow line indicates a regular water hazard.
The yellow line only comes into play when you are playing a shot from the blue and white teeing area, or any other area before you reach the point where the red line starts. The yellow line does not come into play on shots hit from the red tees or the alternate tee. The red pole indicates the point where the regular water hazard becomes a lateral water hazard. It is important to know that when you enter a lateral hazard, you are allowed to take
relief within two clublengths of where the ball last crossed the red hazard line. All of the orange lines in the diagram represent shots from the tee that last cross a yellow line. These are shots from which relief must be taken behind the hazard. The most likely relief option would be to re-tee, taking a stroke and distance penalty. If you choose this option, you may tee from the alternate teeing area. This area was instituted some time ago to help speed up play, as many of our golfers find it difficult to clear the water. If you hit into the water hazard from the alternate tee, take relief under the lateral hazard rule. The ball hit into the hazard on the black line last entered the hazard beyond the pole. This golfer may drop within two club lengths of the spot where it crossed the red line, without losing distance. I hope this clears up anything you didn't understand about this tricky little spot on the course. MARKING THE BALL OF ANOTHER PLAYER Rob and Jake were playing in a stroke play tournament. Jake had just chipped onto the green and was walking his clubs around the green. It was now Rob's turn to putt and Jakes ball was on his line, so Rob went up to Jake's ball, marked it, and tossed it off to the side. After Rob had finnished putting, Jake went up to his ball and putted it to the hole. He missed the putt and tapped in the second putt. At that point, Rob remembered tossing Jake's ball off to the side and informed Jake that he had just occurred a penalty for playing from a wrong place and that he would have to putt again from the correct place. Jake agreed that he should have to redo the putt from the correct position, but he didn't feel that he should have to take a penalty. So he informed the group that he would proceed under rule 3-3 and refer to the committee for a decision upon completion of the round. He then holed the putt. The committee ruled that since Jake was not aware that his ball had been moved, he could not be penalized. Since he did become aware of the mistake and corrected it before teeing off on the next hole, the ball was holed in one putt and that was his score. If he had teed off on the next hole before finding out about the mix-up, the score played from the wrong spot would have had to count, still no penalty. Rob should have asked for Jake's permission before marking his ball. If he had, Jake probably would have given his OK, and would have known the situation before it became an incident. Then, since it was Rob who lifted the ball, it is Rob who was supposed to replace the ball as well. If they were playing match play, Rob would have incured a one stroke penalty for lifting an opponent's ball without permission. Lately, I have been asked quite a few times, "Is my ball in bounds or out of bounds when it is halfway across the line?" Also, "Is my ball in the water hazard or out of the water hazard if it is touching the line?" And, "Is my ball in the bunker when it is hanging over the lip?" Out of bounds, which is norally defined by stakes, is determined by the line drawn from the nearest inside points of the stakes at ground level. The line extends vertically upwards and downwards. A ball is out of bounds when all of it lies outside the line. Therefore, if your ball is stradling the line, it is in bounds. Any stakes or lines that determine the boarder of a water hazard are determened to be in the hazard. This line also extends vertically upward and downward. A ball is determined to be in the water hazard if any part of it lies inside or touches the hazard line. Your ball does not have to be in the water to be in the hazard, as I have heard some golfers try to reason. Your ball is in a bunker when any part of it touches the sand. The margin of a bunker does not extend vertacally upward as does the margins of out of bounds and water hazards. So if your ball is hanging over a grass-covered lip of a bunker, but not touching the sand, it is not in the hazard. |
