Where to drop?

[Rlburnside]

Played a doubles greensome competition yesterday my pp landed in a hazard/ penalty area just inside the red stakes but the ball was playable but there’s a loch to play over, so I decided to play it.

I didn’t play a good shot and the ball landed in the water, I didn’t know the rule on how to precede so we decided to drop again from where my ball was.

I was told afterwards this was wrong and we could have dropped on the fairway, I know you can drop with penalty if ball goes into penalty area with line it went in, but as I played a ball already in penalty area there was obviously no line it went in.

 

[Colin L]

What you did wasn’t wrong but you also had the option of taking relief outside the PA using where your ball last crossed its edge - from your previous stroke, that is - as your reference.

 

[salfordlad]

It is not 100 per cent clear from the OP whether the loch you attempted to play over (and ditched your ball in) was the same penalty area that you had played from. IF it was a different PA, there would also have been other drop options for the same one stroke penalty. But as Colin notes, you didn't do anything wrong by playing again from where the previous stroke was made (stroke and distance is always an option).

 

[Rlburnside]

It is not 100 per cent clear from the OP whether the loch you attempted to play over (and ditched your ball in) was the same penalty area that you had played from. IF it was a different PA, there would also have been other drop options for the same one stroke penalty. But as Colin notes, you didn't do anything wrong by playing again from where the previous stroke was made (stroke and distance is always an option).

Yes it was the same penalty area

 

[Rlburnside]

What you did wasn’t wrong but you also had the option of taking relief outside the PA using where your ball last crossed its edge - from your previous stroke, that is - as your reference.

Ok thanks, we could have played from the fairway then much better option ,lessen learnt?

 

[Colin L]

17.2a gives you all the detail.