Questionable Drop, part 355

[Pete_Pittock]

I predict we will find out the PGAs feelings about this the next time they go to a course with Billy Bunker and see if they make them an 'integral part of the course' on the local rules sheet.  Before I would go "IPC" I would have to take a practice stance on it
to see if it affects the shot.

[Thomas Dai]

Drain in the base of a bunker - claims free drop if it interfers with stance (or shot)?
Atb

[JESII]

Yes.


I'm guessing the combination of injury risk and damage to a part of the infrastructure of the bunker mean this horse is out of the barn...

[Peter Pallotta]

Yes.
I'm guessing the combination of injury risk and damage to a part of the infrastructure of the bunker mean this horse is out of the barn...

Probably true re risks, but it reminds me of the Richard Pryor bit about Jim Brown - played for 9 years and never got hurt or missed a single game - and that's when there were mostly white guys so you know he had no one blocking for him. Nowadays you got guys getting hurt in *practice*!

[David_Tepper]

"How about:
Play it as it lies .... unless you declare it unplayable.
If you hit the ball behind an obstruction - whose fault is that?"

Bob M. -

Are you seriously suggesting players get no free relief from a drain, a sprinkler head or even a cart path? I can just imagine all the broken clubs, broken wrists and broken drains & sprinkler heads.

Most of the shots hit next to an immovable obstruction are no one's fault.

DT

[Wayne_Kozun]

With soft spikes it isn't clear to me why you get stance relief from a cart path. And playing off cart paths isn't dangerous (except for your club) - I do it from time to time when the drop puts you in a worse position such as when there is long grass at the nearest point of relief.