Don't lose your head!
Player A and Player B are playing golf together. The head of A’s club separates from the shaft during his back swing. He completed his swing but missed the ball. B then plays. His club separates from the shaft on his downswing. He continues his swing and also misses the ball.
You might think the rule treats them both the same. No. The key words here are backswing and downswing. Since A’s clubhead separated on his backswing, he completed his swing with the shaft only. Therefore he did not make a stroke, since a stroke is “the forward movement of the club....”. A shaft by itself is not a club. Decision 14/2.
Pool old Player B however, lost his head or rather his clubhead on his downswing and so the forward movement of his club is a stroke. Decision 14/3.
Suppose Player B on his downswing decides to miss the ball, deliberately and intentionally swings over the top of the ball or outside the ball, in this case he is deemed to have checked his downswing voluntarily by altering the path of his downswing and missing the ball, even though the swing carried the clubhead beyond the ball. In this case there is no penalty. However, if in spite of his best efforts he hits the ball, he is considered to have made a stroke.
Relief from the weather
With the weather and the course as they are at the moment, it might be a good time to revisit Rule 25 which deals with Abnormal Ground Conditions. This definition included casual water and ground under repair (GUR).
Have a look the definition. (Link to the definition). The full description can be found .....
The R&A gets lots of questions on this topic.
Decision 25/1
Q. Is soft mushy earth casual water.
A. No. Soft mushy earth is not casual water, unless water is visible on the surface before or after hsi stance.
Decision 25/4
Q. In a wet area, casual water is not visible before or after a player takes his normal stance. However, pressing down hard with one foot, the player causes water to appear around the sole of his shoe. Is the player entitled to relief under Rule 25-1b?
A. No. Water visible through undue effort with the feet is not casual water.
Rule 25 allows for relief without penalty for a ball lying in an Abnormal Ground Condition (except with it is in a water hazard or lateral water hazard).
Rule 25-1b. The rule covers three distinct areas with regard to relief:
- Through the Green
- In a Bunker
- On the Putting Green
- On the Teeing Ground
In each case the rule contains the words “nearest point of relief”. This causes some differences of opinion as some golfers seem to regard this “point” as a matter of choice, where as the Rule states that it is a matter of fact. So you may not wander about looking for the spot that suits you best.
Through the Green
If you are in the GUR at the side of the 6th fairway to take relief, you must first find the nearest point of relief to where your ball is lying that is not nearer the hole. You put down a marker; you then measure one club length from that point and drop your ball in the correct way, not nearer the hole. The ball is now in play and you may not touch it, except within the Rules including Local Rules. Too bad if you end up behind a tree or in a shrub.
In a bunker
In this case relief must be taken in the bunker and the ball must be dropped in the bunker. In KGC most likely abnormal ground condition in a bunker is casual water. In this case the Rule is a bit less restrictive because it allows for the possibility that complete relief may not be achievable at the nearest point of relief. If this is the case, you may drop as near as possible to where you ball lay, but not nearer the hole.
There is another option. Under a penalty of one stroke you may drop outside the bunker keeping the point where you ball lay directly between the hole and the point on which ball is dropped, with no limit to how far behind the bunker the ball may be dropped.
On the Putting Green
If the ball lies on the putting green, the player must lift the ball and place it, without penalty at the nearest point of relief that is not is a hazard or, if complete relief is impossible, at the nearest position to where it lay that affords maximum available relief from the condition, but not nearer the hole and not in a hazard. The nearest point of relief or maximum available relief may be off the putting green.
On the Teeing Ground
If the ball lies on the teeing ground the player must lift the ball and drop it, without penalty, in accordance with Rule 25-1b.
Ball not found in abnormal ground condition
A player hits his ball off the 8th tee in KGC. The ball heads for the ground under repair (GUR) but isn’t found. Where do you take relief? We’ve already covered the situation where the ball is found, and we know that the nearest point of relief takes its reference from where the ball lies in the GUR. But if the ball is not found, where do you take relief from, since it is not necessary to find the ball in an abnormal ground condition in order to take relief. So what is the reference point in this case? The most important requirement is that is must be known or virtually certain that the ball is in the abnormal ground condition. In the absence of such knowledge or certainty, the player must proceed under Rule 27-1, Lost Ball.
If it is known or virtually certain that a ball that has not been found is in an abnormal ground condition the player may take relief under this rule, i.e. Rule 25. If he elects to do so, the spot where the ball last crossed the outermost limits of the abnormal ground condition must be determined and, for the purpose for applying this Rule, the ball is deemed to lie at this spot for the purposes of finding the nearest point of relief.
Ray Wilson
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