Linda… here is the situation:
A golfer hits a drive left and it is headed for a lateral
water hazard. The player looks for his ball but cannot find it
so assumes it went in the hazard and makes his two club-length drop.
After hitting the dropped ball the original ball is found in the fairway
(evidently it hit a tree and took a very favorable bounce).
Question: Does he play the dropped ball just as if the original ball had not
been found, or is this considered an illegal drop and the player resumes play
with his original ball after taking a penalty for hitting the wrong ball?
Thanks,
Lou from Texas
Dear Lou,
If the player knows
or is virtually certain that his ball is in the water hazard, he is entitled
to drop a ball under any of the relief options in Rule 26-1, adding one penalty
stroke to his score. Once he drops the ball and plays it, it becomes his ball
in play and the original ball is “lost.” The ball that he finds in the fairway
should be picked up.
If the player does not
know or is not virtually certain that his ball is in the water
hazard, he is not entitled to any of the relief options in 26-1. This is a lost ball, and he is required to put
another ball into play under stroke and distance. When he drops within two
club-lengths and plays another ball, he has played from a wrong place.
Penalties:
1. In match play, he loses the hole.
2. In stroke play, he incurs a one-stroke penalty for
hitting a ball under stroke and distance [Rule 27-1, Ball Lost], and a
two-stroke penalty for hitting from a wrong place [Rule 20-7c]. He may also be
subject to disqualification for what is known as a “serious breach” if he has
gained a significant distance advantage by dropping next to the hazard instead
of returning to hit a ball from where he hit his previous shot. If the player
suspects he has committed a serious breach, he should play a second ball (in
your scenario, he would return to the tee), and report the facts to the
Committee. The Committee would decide which ball to count. If he does not play
a second ball, and the Committee rules he has committed a serious breach, he will
be disqualified.
You might find it helpful to read Decision 26-1/3, which
discusses this same scenario [http://www.usga.org/Rule-Books/Rules-of-Golf/Decision-26/#26-1/3];
and Decision 26-1/1, which explains the meaning of “known” or “virtually
certain” with regard to a ball struck towards a water hazard [http://www.usga.org/Rule-Books/Rules-of-Golf/Decision-26/#26-1/1].
Linda
Copyright © 2013 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
