Hello Linda–
In a tournament recently, my ball landed just off the green,
nestled right down in the grass - almost looked 'embedded' within the grass. I
hit it out of that spot (it didn't get very far), then saw that it had in fact
been resting on a sprinkler head that neither I nor my fellow competitors could
identify prior to my taking the shot.
My fellow competitors agreed that I should replay the shot
by taking a drop since that would be the correct procedure if we had known my
ball had landed on a sprinkler head.
What is the correct ruling in this circumstance?
Thank you!
Lulu from Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Dear Lulu,
A player who discovers that her ball was lying on a
sprinkler head (immovable obstruction) after
she hits the ball has no option to replay the shot. The time to make that
discovery is prior to hitting. Once
you hit the ball, it is in play.
When you lifted your ball in play and dropped it where you
hit your previous shot, you were playing under stroke and distance [Rule 27-1].
You must count both shots and add a one-stroke penalty to your score.
If you suspected something unusual about a ball lying in
deep grass near the green, you could have carefully probed with a tee or other
slim tool to find out whether there was a sprinkler head under your ball.
Linda
Copyright © 2017 Linda Miller. All rights reserved.
