Red and Yellow Water Hazards

[matts1984]

Can someone explain this to me, I know that if it goes in Yellow you have to drop in line with where it entered. Red you have to drop within 2 club lengths of the point it entered. But my question is can you play out of this area if it is possibe to do so??

 

[robbest3offthetee]

Yes , You can play the ball anywhere on the course, obviously if its in a hazard, you cannot ground your club

 

[Region3]

An extra option with the red stakes is to drop the same distance from the hole on the other side of the hazard.

 

[Colin L]

Matts,
To pull together the above comments:

For a ball in a water hazard (marked by yellow) you have three options: 1) Play the ball as it lies with no penalty; 2) go as far back as you like behind the hazard along the line between where your ball last crossed the margin of the hazard and the hole with 1 penalty stroke*; and 3) play from where you played the shot that went into the hazard under stroke and distance.

For a ball in a lateral water hazard (marked by red) you have all the above options plus you can drop within two club lengths of either where the ball last crossed the margin or of a point on the opposite side equidistant from the hole -with a penalty stroke.

*Note that the line is between where the ball crossed and the hole - there is a common misbelief that it is the line of flight of the ball as it crossed.

 

[matts1984]

Thanks guys, also one more question.

If i hit a drive and it goes to an area in light rough and I see it bounce. Then when I get over there i cannot find the ball at all. Do I drop there or have to walk back to the tee box and take it from there?

 

[duncan mackie]

just to empahise that when ever you are dealing with a water hazard and relief you should clearly establish -
1. where you played the last shot from
2. the exact spot on the hazard margin where your ball last crossed

once you have these pinned down, everything else follows quite logically. I really recomend to people that they mark no 2 above with a large object straight away - it makes the rest so much more straightforward.

 

[duncan mackie]

Thanks guys, also one more question.

If i hit a drive and it goes to an area in light rough and I see it bounce. Then when I get over there i cannot find the ball at all. Do I drop there or have to walk back to the tee box and take it from there?

it's lost - you only have 1 option to continue play and that is to return to where you played the last shot and play from there under stroke and distance.

 

[ScienceBoy]

Note that the line is between where the ball crossed and the hole - there is a common misbelief that it is the line of flight of the ball as it crossed.

That makes sense really or a person who hit a different shot shape would have to drop somewhere different. I have always used the line to the hole, its the only direction I recall reading in the rulebook for these matters.

 

[RGDave]

*Note that the line is between where the ball crossed and the hole - there is a common misbelief that it is the line of flight of the ball as it crossed.

Well done that Man!

I'm forever telling people "you can't drop it there", and then have to explain.

 

[Colin L]

You're welcome. It doesn't actually crop up on my home course - no water hazards.

I recollect one occasion elsewhere when I opted to take the option of stroke and distance 100 yards back when I had a perfectly reasonable shot from the grass at the edge of a water hazard near the hole. Eyeing up the large swan nesting about a metre or so away from my ball which was eyeing up me, I was suddenly possessed of a deal more discretion than valour.:mmm: