This is gonna hurt...

[HomerJSimpson]

My club has local rules so paths are a free drop and we are lucky that there aren't many areas with too many stones so clubs don't get dinged too badly apart from club chatter. If I was faced it a lie that was potentially going to smash a club up I'd take a drop in a competition and simply move the ball if I'm on my own. In our roll ups we tend to all err on the side of caution and allow it to be moved.

 

[richart]

I played off a tarmac path at Cooden other day. If I had taken free relief it would have meant dropping in a pampas grass. It was on the 18th, one down so just thinned it off with a six iron. A few slight scratches to bottom of the club, but it is a golf club, and not prize piece of silver. We have a few paths on my course near to the greens, and I usually chip off them rather than take a free drop. Rather play off a tight lie than out of thick rough/heather round the green. My sandwedge has taken a bit of a beating, but it gets worse treatment when hitting stones in bunkers.

If you play the Old Course at St Andrews, you have to play off Granny Clark's Wynd. Sounds like a few on here would take a penalty drop.

 

[Crow]

My Dunlop 9 wood was my weapon of choice for such lies but I'm ashamed to say that since the socket frequency has fallen off dramatically over the last few months or so. when I found a 4 iron for my current Mizuno set (which I'd forgotten I even had ) while making space in the garage for my vintage stuff, the 9 wood was relegated to make way for the 4 iron.

(I can no longer sleep at night)