Rule 14 2 e

[rulie]

Here's an idea - let's revert to the old days and get rid of the rakes. They seem to be an issue - wrong place(s), inconvenient for maintenance workers, not everyone uses them, ....

 

[Swango1980]

Here's an idea - let's revert to the old days and get rid of the rakes. They seem to be an issue - wrong place(s), inconvenient for maintenance workers, not everyone uses them, ....

I wouldn't be against that idea. I'm not a good bunker player in perfectly raked bunkers, so if I need to hack it out of uneven sand, so be it.

I find my ball ends up in footprints significantly more often than it does under a rake anyway

 

[jim8flog]

I get that from a golfing perspective. From a course management perspective, is it a pain in the backside for green staff cutting the grass around bunkers? Any green keepers here?

Yes I fully understand that greens staff do not want to have to get off the mower and move a rake at every bunker when they are mowing.

We had an edict come out from the club many years ago (which I follow) that said rakes should be placed in the bunker in the direction a ball will travel with just a bare minimum of the handle resting on the bunker's edge.

 

[rulefan]

We used to have rake stands about 15" tall positioned at least a rake's length away from the bunker. A sticker on the rake said 'Please replace rake on stand'.
The stands were removed a few years ago as they were deemed to be dangerous. The reason being that stands without rakes may not be seen and players may trip over them.
We had had no reported incidents whilst the stands were in place.

 

[Swango1980]

Yes I fully understand that greens staff do not want to have to get off the mower and move a rake at every bunker when they are mowing.

We had an edict come out from the club many years ago (which I follow) that said rakes should be placed in the bunker in the direction a ball will travel with just a bare minimum of the handle resting on the bunker's edge.

That's what I do. Stick rake in bunker, perpendicular to the back edge. Anyone needing it will be able to pick it up without getting in bunker, but the rake head is far enough in bunker that if, by chance, a ball does get stopped by it, it is far enough in bunker to have a normal shot

 

[DickInShorts]

In my view the worst possible place to leave a rake is at the most common ball entry pint ( usually the side facing back along the line of play) so that a ball can get stopped by the tines - thus leaving the ball on a downslope.
This is often regarded as the most difficult shot in golf.

Far better to leave the rake in the bunker at the side furthest away from the fairway for both fairway and greenside bunkers - as is the edict from our club.
However there are so many who can’t be bothered to walk an extra 10 yards to fetch/replace - even though they will probably be walking 4 miles to play their round.

 

[Swango1980]

In my view the worst possible place to leave a rake is at the most common ball entry pint ( usually the side facing back along the line of play) so that a ball can get stopped by the tines - thus leaving the ball on a downslope.
This is often regarded as the most difficult shot in golf.

Far better to leave the rake in the bunker at the side furthest away from the fairway for both fairway and greenside bunkers - as is the edict from our club.
However there are so many who can’t be bothered to walk an extra 10 yards to fetch/replace - even though they will probably be walking 4 miles to play their round.

I'm not a fan of leaving the rake on the far side of the bunker. The ball will most frequently be coming to rest at that side (as it flies in from the nearside), stopped by the high front slope. So, leaving the rake at the front increases the probability the ball will come to rest against the rake, and right up against the face.

It is also massively inconvenient for players who will probably have to walk through the bunker to get the rake, and tidy up after them, even worse in large bunkers. We all know there are sadly to many people that are a little less inclined to do a good job tidying up after them. Leaving the rake in a position that makes it hard to get to is a great way to increase the odds these types of player won't even bother getting the rake at all. In my opinion of course.

 

[jim8flog]

In my view the worst possible place to leave a rake is at the most common ball entry pint ( usually the side facing back along the line of play) so that a ball can get stopped by the tines - thus leaving the ball on a downslope.
This is often regarded as the most difficult shot in golf.

Far better to leave the rake in the bunker at the side furthest away from the fairway for both fairway and greenside bunkers - as is the edict from our club.
However there are so many who can’t be bothered to walk an extra 10 yards to fetch/replace - even though they will probably be walking 4 miles to play their round.

Most of the bunkers where I play have the steep slopes on the greenside of the bunkers so a ball falling back in to the bunker from the green side will more likely be trapped by a rake on a slope if it was there .

I get where you are coming from. My most hated place for players to leave a rake is just inside the bunker with the rake almost parallel to the bunker edge.

 

[DickInShorts]

I was not suggesting the far side!
For a fairway bunker on the left side of the fairway - leave the rake on the left side as you look from the tee

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

Ah rake placement…my favourite…yummy.