New local rule for the winter at our course.

[brendy]

This week we were sent a winter rule which I previously had never seen enforced at our club, it basically says that any ball coming to rest on the fairways and fringes must be lifted and placed in the rough or semi where available at nearest side to where the ball is situated and no nearer the hole.
Today was the first comp with this rule, I found myself on the wrong end of the poo stick three times where fairway is perfect but dropping sideways made for an extremely difficult second shot. On one particular hole I hit a decent 8 iron 150 yards to a green just missing the very edge to the right (flag on right side also) I was 15 feet from the flag and normally would putt on and take my three. Not this time, I had to move the ball to the right and putt (didnt fancy the chip) left it short and two stabbed the putt. When we got round to the end I asked the vice captain regarding putting from the fringe or fairway and he said it should be ok but I put the fact it said "must be lifted and dropped" to him and he kind of agreed and I asked if the rule could be made clearer as it had cost our fourball a couple of unnecessary shots and that it was open to a little interpretation and we were sure others hadnt dropped.

Ive since heard of at least one other club uses this rule each year, ours only came about because of fairly inclement weather. Does anyone else have this rule imposed? This obviously doesnt mean those lucky sods playing on proper links courses. Our course is 500 yards from the coast but is an out and out parkland course which is getting a load of new drainage due to recent gatherings of water on parts of the course not normally associated with standing water.

 

[smange]

Hi Brendy

My club has started to use this rule this winter and today was the first time I have played with it. We have to drop in the semi-rough within 3 clublengths of the edge and then you can lift and place within 6 inches, so no awful lies. We though are allowed to play off the fairway when you are within 20 yards of the green.
Guess we only going to find out if this rule worked when March comes round again.

Seemed to work ok for me today, managed to score 40 points

 

[brendy]

We played 14 holes (miss 8,9,10 and 11 for the winter comps once we hit november so its oe big loop round the course)
I know why the rule makes sense to bring in (grass not growing this time of the year below 6 degrees etc) though it just needed clarifying that putters can be played from anywhere instead of not mentioning it. We can drop mark and place too, its just bloody akward trying to putt downhill from a thick lie. Meh, I think the victor meldrew is coming out in me! haha.

 

[smange]

I would push for some clarification coz you can bet that some people will play from edge of green and maybe gain an advantage and some(as you did) will follow the rule to the letter, and this maybe making your lie/shot more difficult.

Was up your way last weekend, stayed in the Clandeboye Lodge, nice hotel.

 

[brendy]

Clandeboye is less than a mile from my house yea, nice quiet part of bangor! The culloden would be more your kind of r&r with royal belfast just round the corner!

 

[smange]

Was just a chill out weekend for me and mrs and got good deal for the Clandeboye. Really enjoyed it and will be back up some time in new year so if you fancy a game round your track, i might just manage to convince the good lady that taking my clubs is a good idea.

 

[brendy]

Absolutely, would be nice when the weather is starting to come back in again. No3 is due at the end of january so golf will be knocked on the head for a month or so afterwards until the missus is feeling a little better. Definately get a game at some stage, enjoyed last time, bit more chat this time with less pressure to try to impress!

 

[smange]

I look forward to it, we gotta try to get another N.I meet sorted for start of next season, hopefully we can get a few more next time and maybe even an all Ireland.

My golf certainly wouldnt have done much impressing at Massereene.

 

[TonyN]

My club has introduced this rule, along with all bunkers as GUR, and a few other strange ones too.

 

[DCB]

Over the past few years we have played a similar rule from 1st Nov- 31st Mar. We tee off and if the ball is on the fairway between two sets of marker posts, the ball was lifted and placed in the semi rough at the side of the fairway. The areas around the green were outwith the staked/marked area so could be played as it lies.

This year we have changed away from this as the semi rough at the sides of the fairways was being chewed up and not recovering from the winter golf. We have gone to mats this year as follows,
"As a consequence of the extraordinarily wet conditions we have experienced since August this year and as a result of advice given to us by our STRI consultant The Council have decided that it will be compulsory to use a mat for all fairway shots from 1st November 2008 until 1st April 2009. This will replace the former system of fence posts and moving the ball to the semi rough. Playing from the rough will be as it lies; therefore mats should not be used when in the rough. An area about 20m from the green will be marked at every hole however, where the use of a mat will be discretionary. This will allow for pitching within this area from the turf, if the player desires. "

Personally I dont have an issue with mats, but there will no doubt be some who don't want to play golf this way. It will be interesting to see how this is policed as I'm sure there will be folks out there who don't use the mats whilst on the fairway.

 

[SammmeBee]

So do I tak that your fairways have been in a particularly bad state this summer to bring this in effect?

Sounds to me like the greenkeepers do fancy walking about with sand buckets and putting divots back in the cold really....I hope they're going to be busy doing other things on the course over the winter??

 

[DCB]

It has been so wet here that we have had 3.5 time the normal rainfall since mid summer. The fairways have never dried out properly in the second half of the season. This measure is to help protect the grass at a time where growth slows then stops altogether.

Plenty of other works to go on over the winter all being well. Extra drainage works on a coule of holes and extensions to teeing grounds on at least one of the holes.

That plus the usual winer maintenance work keeps them busy.

But if the Sports Turf Research Institute Consultant recommends something be done, then it's in the club's best interest to try and carry out his recommendations.

 

[SammmeBee]

I think I would be asking the question though of what the Club (and the STRI man) are suggesting/implementing and doing so that next winter you can play off the fairways. I have played links course in the South West that do the drop off the fairway thing - it actually gets quite annoying after a while and you get lots of divot in similar places just off the fairways.....

 

[DCB]

It's a parkland course I'm on Sammmebee, It takes a hammering in the winter from wet weather. I'm all for protecting fairways and greens in the winter if it means playing of good turf and to good greens during the main season.

 

[SammmeBee]

Getting good greens and fairways is key for the summer but my agrument is that a good course/greenkeeper should be playable all year round and so remedial work should be done to make it playable all year round.....

 

[DCB]

In an ideal world , yes I agree. However this is Scotland. The grass stops growing round about now and growth doesn't start properly 'til late April. Add that to the lack of daylight and the sheltered parts of many courses will suffer from wet conditions.

This summer has been one of the worst I can remember. It has been so wet in the second half of the season that we have probably had more wet weather in that time period than we would normally get in an average winter.

When mother nature unleashes it's worst, there's not a lot we can do really.

 

[Herbie]

The irony of this rule for me is that when I practice on the course I very often adopt this method regardless of how good a drive was, purely to enhance skill in the light/heavy rough and to deliberately create difficulty, but Ive never had to use it yet in over 30 yrs lol.

I think its a good rule for looking after fairways in winter and everyone is in the same boat, I would love to play under a local rule like it as I am used to doing it lol.

 

[brendy]

Played today on the rules again, turns out putting from the fringe hasnt been ok'd yet so everything had to be dropped back to the semi, I know its the same for everyone playing but its bloody frustrating dropping from just short of the greens on the par 5s only to have to drop left or right and instead of pitch or putt up the green, you have a lob shot over a bunker to a hidden pin. Still managed a 75 (par 71) so still reasonably happy.

 

[RGuk]

It's an interesting rule. I can see some sense in it but would not be keen for it to include the fringe (apron) areas of the green.....this would cost me a lot of shots. I'm quite strong with 7/8 iron c'n'runs but weak out of tangly rough with my SW/GW. If I was 2 inches off the green and looking at a straightforward chip, I can't think I could accept moving 5-10 yards further away into the cabbage.

Yesterday, the winter rules at TonyN's say you can lift and place anywhere except hazards. Now, call me stupid to not take advantage, but I just couldn't bring myself to lift and clean when it was my fault it was in the rough. Around the greens, I took full advantage.

As for the fairway thing......I'm tempted to say that the player ought to have the choice of which side to drop. I don't know how this might work in principle....

Personaly, If I was running a course I'd
a) cut the rough short-ish and then b) allow cleaning and placing if the ball has been moved from the fairway BUT cleaning and dropping if the ball was in the rough to start off with.
i.m.o. there IS a difference. Clean and "place" if you've driven into the rough is surely improving the lie. Clean and "drop" from shoulder height should make it hard to get a better lie, although it will sometimes happen.

????

Any thoughts....

 

[brendy]

Great idea Dave, if you put it into the rough then you shouldnt deserve a preferred lie. I cant type this and say that I wont prefer my lie when the whole course can do the same though, no point throwing away any advantage while the lift clean and place rule is in force though. Id fully back the lift clean place fairways/off fairway drop and lift (with or without clean) and drop when already in the rough rule.