There are no red stakes elsewhere noted in the wash. If it was just a walkway, why is it marked with red stakes? I can ground my club at my club in the desert if it's not marked.
Was there a red line?
The other purpose would be to allow a player with a horrible lie to take relief under penalty of a stroke under the hazard rules. You cannot red-stake an area unless it meets the definition of a water hazard. Most of the desert does not meet the definition but washes do:
A "
water hazard" is any sea, lake, pond, river, ditch, surface drainage ditch or other open water course (whether or not containing water) and anything of a similar nature on the
course. All ground and water within the margin of a
water hazard are part of the
water hazard.
When the margin of a
water hazard is defined by stakes, the stakes are inside the
water hazard, and the margin of the
hazard is defined by the nearest outside points of the stakes at ground level. When both stakes and lines are used to indicate a
water hazard, the stakes identify the
hazard and the lines define the
hazardmargin. When the margin of a
water hazard is defined by a line on the ground, the line itself is in the
water hazard. The margin of a
water hazard extends vertically upwards and downwards.
A ball is in a
water hazard when it lies in or any part of it touches the
water hazard.
Stakes used to define the margin of or identify a
water hazard are
obstructions.
Note 1: Stakes or lines used to define the margin of or identify a
water hazard must be yellow.
Note 2: The
Committee may make a Local Rule prohibiting play from an environmentally-sensitive area defined as a
water hazard.