Reconsidering OB - a little help

[Steve Green]

My home course has a practice area tucked between the 1st and 6th holes.  OB stakes surround the range.  We assume that this was implemented to protect our fellow golfers.


I have a couple of questions I would appreciate your assistance with.


1.  Are you aware of situations like this where the practice ground is considered a part of the golf course and is in play (not OoB)?
      In the Chicago area I have heard Point O' Woods has a range in play.


2.  Are you aware of any courses who have removed the OB stakes around a range?


I appreciate the help.

[Tim Gallant]

Steve, at North Berwick, the range is not OB when you play the 8th, 9th and 11th holes. I have played a few shots from the range, and it works because there is never more than a handful of people on the range, so usually a quick arm wave and a shot back into play works. Also, the area of the range where the players usually hit from is not really in play, so there is never a threat to those players.

[Jon Wiggett]

Steve,

at Howley Hall GC near Leeds, there is a practice ground between the 10th, 11th & 12th holes that is part of the course. Never a problem as users know players on the course have priority. Only delays that does happen is trying to find the right ball to play.

Jon

[Matt Frey, PGA]

Before they built their new range, Miami View (Miamitown, Ohio) allowed play from the range and practice area on holes No. 8 and 9.

[Jay Mickle]

At Pine Needles to the right of the first fairway, rough, a line of trees and the cart path is the driving range. It is considered in play for those game enough to hit from there, though often finding ones ball among all of the ProV range balls is often the greatest problem.

[Jim_Kennedy]

though often finding ones ball among all of the ProV range balls is often the greatest problem.

Lot of players purposely hitting into the range?

The Country Club of Torrington's range lies smack dab between #'s 1 & 18 and is in play. Much better since they moved to yellow balls. 

[Mark Pearce]

The practice ground at Muirfield is to the right of the 9th fairway.  It is in play and frequently visited.

[Rob Marshall]

In play at almost every club I can think of in my area.

[Kalen Braley]

Yes....Cypress Point just to the right of the 1st tee.  I hit my Tee ball into it and played from it...

[MClutterbuck]

At San Andres Golf Club in Buenos Aires the driving range is an integral part of the course, with several sliced drives ending up in it every day. We just let folks at the driving range know we are headed in to play, and everybody switches to short wedges until you are out of reach. The challenge is finding your ball in the middle of hundreds of range balls.


The range is probably 40 yards from the first tee, at most. Part of the reason Tom Doak included the course in the Best Walks list in Volume 2.

[Jason Topp]

I have seen many courses where the practice range is considered part of the course.  It works fine as long as you can trust the people using the range and playing the course to exhibit some common sense.  Yellow range balls help as well.

[Paul Gray]

A snap hook on the first on the first at Hayling puts you on the practice ground. You're in play but out of position. Par is unlikely.

[RSantangelo]

In play at almost every club I can think of in my area.

Likewise

[Doug Siebert]

My home course has gone back and forth with OB / not OB on the range left of the 10th hole several times over the years. In this case it is only a safety issue for those who choose to go onto the range and look for / play their ball, as it isn't a shortcut. The way I look at it, if you don't feel comfortable going into the range to look for it, or you can see but don't feel comfortable playing it, you can always declare it lost / unplayable and re-tee with the same penalty as OB. Not marking it OB simply gives you more options.

In the case of a driving range where there having it not be OB would cause golfers to play the course differently - i.e. trying to take a shortcut, then I think it should be OB. Again, you still have the option to trying to take the shortcut, but with the understanding that the penalty for failing is greater.

[Mark Sider]

Ninth hole at Calumet Country Club the range is in play. Thankfully the range balls are yellow. I see a lot of courses where the range is in play. If the range becomes OB then that will change the strategy of club selection off the tee which can be annoying. In course out of bounds is typically annoying though!

[Doug Siebert]

I don't consider having a driving range OB as "in course OB". To me, in-course OB is where both sides of the stakes are in bounds, just not on the same hole, or there is an 'island' of OB (saw this once where there was a small chipping area in the middle of the course surrounded by OB I guess to encourage people to aim their shots away from it)

[cary lichtenstein]

great way to slow up play looking for a white ball among 100's of other white balls

[Wayne_Kozun]

great way to slow up play looking for a white ball among 100's of other white balls

Which is one of the reasons that many clubs with these sorts of ranges use coloured range balls.

[Pete_Pittock]

For those in the industry, does it make any difference from a liability standpoint?