Linda,
Several bunkers on our course are undergoing repair and
having new sand placed. One of my fellow competitors hit into a bunker that had
the right half marked as ground under repair due to no sand placed there yet.
He asked about relief and I told him he was entitled to nearest point of relief
plus 1 club length. However, that would have taken him out of the bunker, so he
took his relief in the part of the bunker with sand, no nearer the hole. Did we
interpret Rule 25 correctly?
Thanks,
Lou from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Dear Lou,
Yes.
If your ball lies in ground under repair in a bunker, the
only way you will get free relief is
to drop in the bunker. Find the
nearest point of relief that is no
closer to the hole and drop within one club-length of that spot. If you
cannot find complete relief, you are permitted to drop on a spot that gives you
the maximum available relief from the condition [Rule 25-1b (ii) (a)].
If there is no spot to drop where your ball won’t be closer
to the hole (e.g., if the back half of the bunker is marked as GUR), or if you
simply prefer to drop outside the bunker, you may drop on the line-of-sight to
the hole, but you must add one penalty stroke to your score [Rule 25-1b (ii)
(b)].
Linda
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