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Rakes in bunkers.

Posted by: user237743 | Fri 16th Oct 2015 17:31 | Last Reply

Why don't golf courses put tubes i.e. Guttering downplpe, upright in the ground so that bunker rakes can be put in them rather than leaving them in the sand or laid on the grass thereby reducing the possibility of the ball being fouled by them. Putting them in the tubes would also keep the bunkers tidy.


Last edit : Fri 16th Oct 2015 17:31
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user246701
Reply : Fri 16th Oct 2015 19:29

The main reason for putting them IN bunkers is so that greenkeepers can mow around the bunkers without having to collect rakes beforehand. so having them sticking out the ground won't change that.

Personally I'd prefer them outside (as there is less chance of being penalised when laying next to one when outside of bunker)

My radical solutuon would be to remove takes all together, it's a hazard leave it to become rough and ready


Last edit : Fri 16th Oct 2015 19:29
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user106712
Reply : Sat 17th Oct 2015 09:25

I agree with that but also with a rule that the ball can be dropped outside the bunker if unplayable. So a bunker would effectively be played a a water hazard !


Last edit : Sat 17th Oct 2015 09:25
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user618719
Reply : Mon 19th Oct 2015 20:53

I say put them in the bunker ,, hard luck if you go in there ,,


Last edit : Mon 19th Oct 2015 20:53
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user202037 [FORUM MODERATOR]
Reply : Wed 21st Oct 2015 15:18

I don't really care where they are as long as people use them!


Last edit : Wed 21st Oct 2015 15:18
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user20747
Reply : Sat 24th Oct 2015 12:08

Put them the bunkers, that way they are part of the hazard, and are not another hazard on their own. If you are in the hazard then that is hard luck, but don't leave them to stop ballsenetering the bunker....


Last edit : Sat 24th Oct 2015 12:08
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user20126 [FORUM MODERATOR]
Reply : Sat 24th Oct 2015 18:56

I did hear a few years ago that in America they were putting spikes on the end of the handle. You then stuck the rake in the ground so it was standing up. Not a bad idea really.

For me, rakes go in the bunker, not outside. If you leave a rake outside the bunker your ball could hit it and be prevented from going into the bunker. So you have gained an advantage.

The problem at my course, and many others that I have played, is that some people have no idea how a rake should be place in a bunker.

For me the rake should be on the outside edge of the bunker. This means that it has the smallest chance to catch your ball. Also, it should be placed with the handle facing back up the fairway towards the tee.

We must have had a number of new members at my golf club. I often walk past a bunker to see the rake left in the front of the bunker, parallel to the hole! So, you hit you ball and it goes into the bunker. Instead of running into the bottom of the bunker, it is stopped by the rake. You move the rake and your next shot is a downhill lie in a bunker!

The problem is that the people who do this will be the same people who don't replace divots, repair pitch marks, etc.

Some people could play golf all their lives, be a member of a golf club for most of their live, but still no be a GOLFER!

Russ


Last edit : Sat 24th Oct 2015 18:56
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user446732
Reply : Wed 28th Oct 2015 10:12

However, in practice, players who leave rakes in bunkers frequently leave them at the side which tends to stop a ball rolling into the flat part of the bunker, resulting in a much more difficult shot than would otherwise have been the case. This is most prevalent at a course where the bunkers are small. When the ball comes to rest on or against a rake in the bunker and the player must proceed under Rule 24-1, it may not be possible to replace the ball on the same spot or find a spot in the bunker which is not nearer the hole – see Decision 20-3d/2.

20-3d/2 Ball in Bunker Moves Closer to Hole When Obstruction Removed and Ball Will Not Remain at Rest When Replaced; All Other Parts of Bunker Are Nearer Hole

Q.A ball came to rest against a movable obstruction, a rake, in a bunker. When the rake was moved the ball rolled nearer the hole. According to Rule 24-1, the ball had to be replaced. Due to the slope and the fact that the sand was firm, the ball, when replaced, rolled closer to the hole.

Under Rule 20-3d, if a ball will not come to rest on the spot where it originally lay, it must be placed at the nearest spot not nearer the hole where it can be placed at rest. The spot where the ball originally lay was farther from the hole than any other part of the bunker. Thus, there was nowhere to place the ball at rest in the bunker that was not nearer the hole. What is the proper procedure if:

  1. The only way the ball would remain at rest at the spot where it lay would be to press it lightly into the sand?

  2. The sand is so hard that it is impossible to replace the ball?

A.There is nothing in the Rules permitting a player to press his ball lightly into the sand or ground to make it remain at rest. Accordingly, in either case, since the player could not place the ball in conformity with the Rules, he should proceed under the stroke-and-distance option of the unplayable ball Rule (Rule 28a) or, in equity (Rule 1-4), drop the ball, under penalty of one stroke, outside the bunker, keeping the point where the ball lay directly between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped.


Last edit : Wed 28th Oct 2015 10:12
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user446732
Reply : Wed 28th Oct 2015 10:16

A tube in a bunker is an Immovable Obstruction from which there is no free relief. If your ball is up against one you may have to take a penalty drop in the bunker.


Last edit : Wed 28th Oct 2015 10:16
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user202037 [FORUM MODERATOR]
Reply : Wed 28th Oct 2015 14:21

D H I don't think your last comment is correct. It is only if the committee have stated that these tubes are an 'integral part of the course' is there no free relief.


Last edit : Wed 28th Oct 2015 14:21
re: Rakes in bunkers.
user202037 [FORUM MODERATOR]
Reply : Wed 28th Oct 2015 14:28

24-2. Immovable Obstruction

a. Interference

Interference by an immovable obstruction occurs when a ball lies in or on the obstruction, or when the obstruction interferes with the player's stance or the area of his intended swing. If the player's ball lies on the putting green, interference also occurs if an immovable obstruction on the putting green intervenes on his line of putt. Otherwise, intervention on the line of play is not, of itself, interference under this Rule.

b. Relief

Except when the ball is in a water hazard or a lateral water hazard, a player may take relief from interference by an immovable obstruction as follows:

(i)

Through the Green: If the ball lies through the green, the player must lift the ball and drop it, without penalty, within one club-length of and not nearer the hole than the nearest point of relief. The nearest point of relief must not be in a hazard or on a putting green. When the ball is dropped within one club-length of the nearest point of relief, the ball must first strike a part of the course at a spot that avoids interference by the immovable obstruction and is not in a hazard and not on a putting green.

(ii)

In a Bunker: If the ball is in a bunker, the player must lift the ball and drop it either:

(a)

Without penalty, in accordance with Clause (i) above, except that the nearest point of relief must be in the bunker and the ball must be dropped in the bunker; or

(b)

Under penalty of one stroke, outside the bunker keeping the point where the ball lay directly between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped, with no limit to how far behind the bunker the ball may be dropped


Last edit : Wed 28th Oct 2015 14:28

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