Welcome to The Sand Trap!

9/25/20 - Links at Spanish Bay View this round on GAME GOLF Absolutely amazing course.  I played OK.  Couldn't control the driver, and it really hurt my score. Highlight of the round was a birdie on #13.  Tricky short par-3, with a tough pin.  Knocked it to 5', and sank the putt.  

You are making a lot of assumptions here. OP says the player can play a stroke into the fairway. So the bush is NOT preventing a stroke or making ANY stroke unreasonable so there is no case for claiming Rule 16.1a(3) applies. I also note any time I can chip a 7 iron into the fairway, I can play that same stroke with my 4 hybrid. My point is you cannot deny a player their rights under the rule - IF the player can play a functional stroke with the 4 hybrid back into the fairway, and that cart path interferes with that functional stroke, then the player is entitled to relief. I would not like to try to sell your approach to Tiger Woods in front of the television cameras. But you are absolutely right that when it is only the player's heels touching the cart path for a 4 hybrid stroke, then the nearest point of complete relief (if relief is legitimate) is only going to be mere inches away from where the ball currently lies. Yet that opens up a legitimate relief area of up to 7-8 square yards. Is that going to help the player? I can't answer that without seeing the situation - possibly the bush still interferes, possibly not. But we can agree if the player took relief on the opposite side of the cart path from where the ball lay, London to a brick the player played from a wrong place (loss of hole).  

I'd say use them until you commit to the comeback, New is very expensive and unless your fitted by a competent fitter more than likely no better than what you got. But a new set of grips at least....

Day 291 A bit of indoor putting, recovering from what I hope is a short term food-related gastrointestinal issue.