Monday, July 15, 2013

What if Your Ball Lands in Casual Water?

Casual water is accumulated water on a golf course. It's not the water that's always in the pond, which is surrounded by yellow stakes, but rain water puddles. During the winter more substantial puddles might emerge on the course which can submerge your golf ball in water.  

If your ball lands in one of those puddles you can play it, and get a little wet. You can also drop the ball out of the puddle without a penalty. That's a free drop which must be dropped just behind the casual water.

However, casual water can also build up in bunkers. With heavy rain small bunkers can become flooded with water. If you land in casual water within a bunker you can still drop your ball, no nearer the hole, to another position in the bunker. It will still be a free drop.  

It's worth noting that you cannot make a free drop outside the bunker. Consequently, if your ball lands in a flooded bunker the free drop still has to be in the bunker. If you drop the ball outside of the bunker, as you might have to, then a one shot penalty will have to be added to the scorecard.

If you ask me that's something that should be altered. A flooded out bunker is, after all, still filled with casual water. As there are no yellow stakes around them they cannot be considered the same as lakes or ponds; yet you still have to drop a ball out of them, with a penalty, in much the same way.  

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