Rules Questions

[Cobra_Nut]

Had a couple of new incidents that had me scratching my head & Ive looked through the rules book & can't find what im looking for. My ball hooked & when I found it it was right in the middle of some staked trees, so if I went 1 club length away I was into the next tree, do I lift & drop back on the fairway but not closer to the hole, with or without a penalty & 2nd I know if you hit a tee shot out of bounds you start from 3 for your next tee shot, but I hit a ball into a bush on my 2nd shot into the green & lost it, do I play a ball again from the spot or drop as close to were the ball went in.

Cheers

 

[Losttheplot]

Wasn't the area of staked trees GUR?

If they are all close to eachother then usually they are GUR.
If there is a staked tree blocking your swing then you get a free drop. If they are lots of staked trees all bunched together you might have to keep dropping until you get out of the staked trees area.

I did read something about this last week where you only get free relief if the tree is going to be struck by your club. If you can swing freely and not hit any staked tree but you are located around staked trees then you have to take your shot as they are not in your way.

I could be corrected here as it was new to me...

 

[Cobra_Nut]

I didn't see any GIR, usually they spray a white line around the area, I did find one spot that & it would have been close I might have been able to chip & run at it but it was deep rough & it would have just gone into more staked trees, then I thought what if the ball hits the small tree if I could get a full swing in its going to cause just as much damage as a club hitting it, confused.

 

[Wheyayeman]

With regards to the staked tree, if the tree interferes with your swing or stance you can take a free drop within 1 club length of the nearest point of relief no nearer the hole, if your next shot is interfered with by another tree you go through the procedure again and again until you can play your shot.

The lost ball in a bush, its irrelevant what happened to your first tee shot, if you lose a ball you need to re-hit from the place you made the shot with a 1 shot penalty ie the tee in this instance which would put you at 5 off the tee

 

[Losttheplot]

With regards to the staked tree, if the tree interferes with your swing or stance you can take a free drop within 1 club length of the nearest point of relief no nearer the hole, if your next shot is interfered with by another tree you go through the procedure again and again until you can play your shot.

That's what I was trying to say but explained in English and easy to understand... Cheers

 

[Fyldewhite]

Staked trees.
Firstly, it must be stated in the local rules that you get relief. This is not automatic and I have seen some clubs that specifically state that you do not get relief (strange I know but true). Than you need to determine the nearest point of relief. This is a point on the course that is not nearer the hole and avoids interferance from a staked tree. It may be a slight clearing in the middle of the area, it may be in some bushes on one side or perhaps in the clear on the fairway side. Point is that you don't get a choice, it is one point and one point only. You then drop a ball within one clublength of that point.

Lost Ball
You have to go back to where you played your last shot under stroke and distance. You would then be playing your 4th shot. You could have played a provisional ball to speed things up.

 

[Matty]

I'm with Fyldewhite here. To get relief from trees (staked or otherwise) there must be a local rule in place. Your relief is the nearest point of relief no nearer the hole probably best tracking back along the line your ball took but not necessarily true in all cases.

If you can't find your ball in bush you need to go back. If you find it you can declare it unplayable and take a drop under penalty.

 

[Fyldewhite]

I'm with Fyldewhite here. To get relief from trees (staked or otherwise) there must be a local rule in place. Your relief is the nearest point of relief no nearer the hole probably best tracking back along the line your ball took but not necessarily true in all cases.

Hmmm. The "nearest point of relief" could be left, right, in the middle, or behind where the ball is. The point is that it's only one point in any given situation. It will very rarely be "back along line".