Water Hazards
A water hazard is one that the player must cross to play the hole (even if there’s no water—go figure). A lateral hazard is one that the player can choose to go around. The pond on 2 and the ravine on 7 are water hazards, because there’s no way to play the hole without hitting over the hazard. The lakes on 4, 8, and 16 are examples of lateral hazards because you can plan around them. Water hazards have yellow stakes; lateral hazards have red stakes.
The rules for a water hazard depend on whether your ball crossed the greenside hazard line.
If the Ball DID NOT cross the greenside hazard line, options are:
1.Hit again from the same spot (1 penalty stroke)
2.Drop the ball outside the hazard with the point where the ball entered the hazard directly on the line between the drop and the flag. There is no limit to how far back the player can go on this line, even if it improves the lie (eg fairway vs. rough).(1 penalty stroke).
3.Hit the ball out of the hazard without grounding your club (no penalty)
If the Ball DID cross the greenside hazard line, the options change as follows:
Ball hit from the fairway side crosses the greenside hazard line before re-entering the hazard: Options 2 is available only from the fairway side of the hazard using the point where the ball went back into the hazard to determine the line. (Why? A player must remove the ball from the hazard to take this form of relief. Since the ball entered the hazard from the green side, the line between the point where the ball entered the hazard and the flag is all within the hazard until you exit the hazard on the fairway side.)
Ball hit from outside the hazard on the green side goes back into the hazard (example a chip from behind the hole that rolls back into the hazard): Option 1 will be on the green side of the hazard
Under Option 3, if you take a shot but the ball does not exit the hazard, you still have all 3 options available for your subsequent shot based on the shot that put the ball into the hazard. Once the ball crosses the line to exit the hazard, options from that point forward are based on that shot, not the shot that put the ball into the hazard.
The following types of relief are NEVER available for a water hazard
•Taking an unplayable lie, even if your ball is not actually in the water
•Dropping within two club lengths from the point where the ball entered the hazard
Four players hit from spot A. Players 1 and 2 hit into the water. Player 3 ball crosses the greenside hazard line but rolls back into the hazard (water or grass). Player 4 ball clears the hazard to spot B but goes back into the hazard on their next shot.
What options are available to each player?
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Players 1 & 2:
1.Hit again from spot A (1 stroke penalty)
2.Drop the ball outside the hazard with the point where the ball entered the hazard directly on the line between the drop and the flag. There is no limit to how far back the player can go on this line, even if it improves the lie (eg fairway vs. rough). (1 stroke penalty)
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Player 3
1.Play the ball where it lies (no penalty)**
2.Drop the ball outside the hazard with the point where the ball entered the hazard directly on the line between the drop and the flag. There is no limit to how far back the player can go on this line even if it improves the lie (eg fairway vs. rough). Player must drop on the fairway side of the hazard in order to take the ball out of the hazard (1 stroke penalty)
3.Hit again from the spot of the previous shot either spot A (1 stroke penalty)
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Player 4
1.Play the ball where it lies if it’s inside the hazard line but not in the water (no penalty)**
2.Hit again from spot B (1 stroke penalty)
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**if the shot doesn’t exit the hazard, each subsequent shot is based on the spot where the ball originally entered the hazard (the spot where it came back from the green into the hazard) until the ball exits the hazard. And yes, all the strokes count.
Four players hit from spot A. Players 1 and 2 hit into the water. Player 3 ball crosses the greenside hazard line but rolls back into the hazard (water or grass). Player 4 ball clears the hazard to spot B but goes back into the hazard on their next shot.
What options are available to each player?
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Players 1 & 2:
1.Hit again from spot A (1 stroke penalty)
2.Drop the ball outside the hazard with the point where the ball entered the hazard directly on the line between the drop and the flag. There is no limit to how far back the player can go on this line, even if it improves the lie (eg fairway vs. rough). (1 stroke penalty)
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Player 3:
1.Play the ball where it lies (no penalty)**
2.Drop the ball outside the hazard with the point where the ball entered the hazard directly on the line between the drop and the flag. There is no limit to how far back the player can go on this line even if it improves the lie (eg fairway vs. rough). Player must drop on the fairway side of the hazard in order to take the ball out of the hazard (1 stroke penalty)
3.Hit again from the spot of the previous shot either spot A (1 stroke penalty)
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Player 4:
1.Play the ball where it lies if it’s inside the hazard line but not in the water (no penalty)**
2.Hit again from spot B (1 stroke penalty)
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**if the shot doesn’t exit the hazard, each subsequent shot is based on the spot where the ball originally entered the hazard (the spot where it came back from the green into the hazard) until the ball exits the hazard. And yes, all the strokes count.
Players hit from tee box. Player 1 is clearly out of play. Player 2 doesn’t know if they can find their ball. Player 3 ball crosses the greenside hazard line and rolls back into the hazard but is findable. Player 4 ball lands in the bunker spot B but goes back into the hazard on their next shot.
What options are available to each player?
No one has the option to drop within 2 club lengths of where ball entered the hazard or take an unplayable lie due to water hazard rules. The option of drop along the line back from the flag to the point where the ball entered the hazard isn’t practical due to hole layout.
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Player 1: Hit again from the tee or drop zone (1 stroke penalty)
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Players 2:
1.Hit again from tee/drop zone (1 stroke penalty)
2.Take a provisional. Per USGA rules, provisionals are not allowed for water hazards. However, WGA association rule will allow a provisional to maintain pace of play. See provisional notes.
Player 3:
1.If accessible, play the ball where it lies (no penalty)
2.Hit again from the teebox or the drop area (1 stroke penalty)
Player 4:
1.If accessible, play the ball where it lies (no penalty)
2.Hit again from spot B (1 stroke penalty)
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Provisional:
a) If the original ball is found, it MUST be played. If the provisional is a great shot, opponent is entitled to find the original ball and force player to use it.
If the provisional is out of play, hit again from tee or drop zone. If original ball is found, no additional strokes for the out of play provisional or subsequent shot.
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