The Rules of Golf are tricky! Thankfully, we’ve got the guru. Our Rules Guy knows the book front to back. Got a question? He’s got all the answers.
My ball came to rest in the rough alongside the practice area. There were several practice balls that had overshot the practice area and were thus on the course. Some were in my way, and I batted them away with my club. Was I guilty of playing the wrong ball or practicing on course and thus incurring a penalty, or are they treated as removable objects? —Keith Netley, via email
Keith, and all Rules Guy readers, it is important to practice courtesy. Golf-wise, however, “courtesy” and “practice” are two different things.
As long as you didn’t swing at these stray range balls for some other reason than to get them out of the way as a courtesy — such as, say, getting in a practice stroke, taking a full setup and swing, et cetera — then such actions come with no guilt, per Rules 5.5a and 15.2.
These balls are movable obstructions, and you can move them without penalty.
For more obstruction-related guidance from our guru, read on …
Rules Guy: How do you handle a *living* obstruction?
My ball lies in a red penalty area. It’s playable, but there’s a fence between the ball and the green. The fence is out of bounds, my ball is not. Do I get relief from an immovable obstruction? If so, must I drop within the penalty area, or just within two club-lengths of the closest point of relief? —Gary Ahlstrom, Charlotte, NC
First things first, Gary: No, you do not get free relief from an immovable obstruction if your ball is in a penalty area, per Rule 17.3.
Further, since the fence is out of bounds, even if the ball wasn’t in a penalty area, you still wouldn’t get free relief from it. Alas, this renders your follow-up question moot, although it never hurts to ask!
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