Friday, July 1, 2016

Ask Linda #1332-Ball dropped behind hazard rolls forward

Linda,
Player hits his ball into a yellow marked hazard. He drops his ball on a line from the pin and the point where the ball crossed the hazard line [on the flagline]. The dropped ball hits the ground and rolls toward the hole several feet. Does he re drop because the ball has moved closer to the hole?
Thanks,
Lou from Georgetown, Texas

Dear Lou,

I suspect a number of golfers don’t know the answer to this, so everyone please pay attention.

When you drop behind a water hazard on the flagline (relief option “b” under Rule 26-1), the drop is good even if the ball rolls forward, provided it doesn’t roll forward more than two club-lengths. This is because the ball is not nearer the hole than its original position [Rule 20-2c (vii) (a)].

Linda
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