Free drop?

Your ball comes to rest in a rabbit scrape right behind a tree in a direct line between ball and your next shot towards the flag. Do you get relief from the scrape, if so how much and in what direction?

This has become a very controversial debate amoung a large group of palyers and officials at our club.

Any views and interpretations would be appreciated.

My own opinion, for what it's worth, is that you are entitled to free relief from any animal scrapings. 

Then I would say it would be within two clubs lengths of it's original position, no nearer the hole.

So you would be able to move the ball to the side of the tree and continue without penalty.

Any other answers?

I'm going to work shortly so haven't got time to look this up in the rule book.

Russ

Found this which I think explains well enough

A hole made by a burrowing animal is considered "abnormal ground conditions".

This means you treat it the same as ground under repair or casual water, if that helps.

You get a drop within one club-length of the nearest point of relief. The nearest point of relief is the spot on the course closest to where your ball lies, such that the burrow will not interfere with your lie, swing or stance. You also cannot drop into a hazard on onto the green.

If your ball is in the burrow, you certainly get relief. No one would argue.

If you're asking what to do when your ball is not in the burrow, but you would have to stand in the burrow to take your shot, that's a different story.

To determine whether the burrow interferes with your stance, you would have to take a normal stance with the club you would most likely use for the shot, in the direction you would most likely play the shot.

If the burrow intereferes with your stance, you get relief.

For example, if you're 80 yards from the green, you can't take a stance with your driver and claim that the burrow is in your way. You'd have to use a wedge.Russ point of intrest : 1 club lenght free drop. 2 clubs with a penalty.

Dave,

I've had this one before and it is a strange answer.

Because of the tree, you don't get relief from the Rabbit Scrape. The "Exception" to Rule25-1b states "A player may not take relief under this Rule if (a) it is clearly unreasonable for him to make a stroke because of interference by anything other than an Abnormal Ground Condition or (b) interference by an Abnormal Ground Condition would occur only through an unnececcessarily abnormal stance, swing or direction of play".

So if you end up in a Rabbit Scrape behind a tree, sorry, but no relief.

TheLyth

Remember Seve on the last at Valderama.

Nope , do tell John or was it something to do with him denying it was his ball?

He had run out of fairway down the right handside instead of turning the corner and nestled nicely up against an umbrella pine tree. He was trying to claim relief because of rabbit droppings but the referee was having none of it. John Paramour.

I played with the tour referee, John Paramour at Chart Hills in an Diners Club International event and we discussed this particular incident.

I have found a link to what happened.

http://www.golfmagic.com/features/golf-rules-we-speak-to-europes-top-referee/6421.html

You're perhaps best remembered for that ruling at the Volvo Masters at Valderrama when you wouldn't give Seve Ballesteros relief from what he thought were marks from a burrowing animal at the bottom of a tree on the 18th.

Dave,

I bet the argument was that if the player doesn't get relief to play towards the green because of the tree, he can get relief from the Rabbit Scrape if he is wanting to play out sideways. Then after dropping his ball he can then play towards the green if that option was now available after the drop.

TheLyth

I heard something similar where a right handed pro asked for a free drop because an immovable object was impeding his swing which he was going to make left handed. He got the drop then preceded to play the shot right handed!!

Now that's using the rules to your advantage big time!!

Each Golf Club and the Pro Tours have Local Rules. A Golf Club doesn't need a Ruling in what to do with TV Towers and Gallery Fences but the Pro Tours come up against these every week.

"Stones in Bunkers" is one Rule, some Golf Clubs allow them to be removed, others don't. The Pro Tour states that the Pro's can remove them on every course they play a tournament.

The Rules are very complex when you look deep into them and it is when you know all the options available to you that it sometimes looks like you are bending the Rules.

TheLyth