Corporate Golf Services

The other day I watched someone switch golf balls on the putting green. This person was playing most of each hole with one ball and putting with a different ball. This is not allowed under “The Rules of Golf.”

From the Rules of Golf – 15-1: “A player must hole out with the ball played from the teeing ground unless the ball is lost or out of bounds.”

The Rules of Golf also say that a player may substitute a ball if the current ball is “unfit for play.” (Rule 5-3) “A ball is unfit for play if it is visibly cut, cracked or out of shape. A ball is not unit for play solely because mud or other materials adhere to it, its surface is scratched or scraped or its paint is damaged or discolored.”

• Would a small puddle on the golf course be considered casual water?

• Can you take free relief from casual water?

• Do you drop or place the ball when taking relief?

(Answers are at the conclusion of the article.)

Casual water is “any temporary accumulation of water on the course that is not in a water hazard and is visible before or after the player takes his stance.” (The Rules of Golf 2008-2009)

So how do you deal with this situation when your ball is lying in casual water?

First you must determine the nearest point of relief. This is not necessarily the nicest point of relief; there is no choice involved. The nearest point of relief is the point on the course that is not nearer the hole and that offers full relief from the casual water.

In order to determine the nearest point of relief, you use the club with which you would have made your next shot and take your stance holding the club as you would when addressing the ball. At this point there should be no interference to stance or swing from the casual water. The point at which the clubhead is touching the ground should be the closest point to where your ball originally lay. Mark that spot with a tee and measure one clublength from there not nearer the hole. Then drop the ball.

What if the ball rolls back into the casual water?

You must redrop. If it rolls in again, you will redrop but on this drop you need to take note of the spot where the ball first strikes the ground, and if it has rolled back into the casual water, you must pick the ball up and place it on that spot.

Answers: Yes, yes and perhaps both.