Hi Linda,
I and several of my friends are really enjoying your blog
posts and are all learning more about the Rules of Golf.
Yesterday, I was playing in an inter-club invitational at
another club in a stroke play competition. On a 115 yard par 3 there is an
elevated tee and a deep gorge separating the tee and the green. At the bottom
of the gorge there is water. The whole gorge is marked with red stakes. My tee
shot almost made it across the gorge, but rolled back into the gorge landing
about 20 feet from the edge of the green, in long grass. I decided to play the
ball from the hazard. When I took my shot, two balls popped up. There must have
been another ball under mine, which I had not noticed. I hit my ball again from
where it lay, still in the hazard.
Is there a penalty for hitting the second ball? I thought
not, since it was an abandoned ball and I hit it in the process of hitting my
own ball.
And, when I was walking down to access my ball, I was
careful not to ground my club, but since it was very steep, could I have used
my club as a cane to keep myself from falling, as long as I didn’t improve my
lie in any way?
Thanks.
Lulu from Malagash, Nova Scotia
Dear Lulu,
There is no penalty when you hit your own ball and your
stroke dislodges a ball that was hidden beneath yours [Decision 15/2].
You may use a cane or club to enter or leave a hazard
provided you do not improve the lie of your ball and you do nothing to test the
condition of the hazard [Decision 13-4/3.5].
Linda
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