Asheville

5-2g Posting a Score from an Unrated Set of Tees on a Rated Course offers another option. https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/handicapping/handicap-manual.html#!rule-14379

The Rules aren't that mean. A ball which the player is certain is in an abnormal course condition but cannot locate or cannot retrieve is not a "lost ball". Okay, he or she might have to buy a new one but it'd not "lost" in the sense of Rule 18. R16.1e. Relief for Ball Not Found but in or on Abnormal Course Condition If a player’s ball has not been found and it is known or virtually certain that the ball came to rest in or on an abnormal course condition on the course, the player may use this relief option instead of taking stroke-and-distance relief: The player may take relief under Rule 16.1b, c or d, using the estimated point where the ball last crossed the edge of the abnormal course condition on the course as the spot of the ball for purposes of finding the nearest point of complete relief.

Temporary water anywhere on the course except in a penalty area is afforded relief, mostly free except in a couple of circumstances one of which is in bunkers, and is covered in Rule 16.1. https://www.usga.org/content/usga/home-page/rules/rules-2019/rules-of-golf/rules-and-interpretations.html#!ruletype=fr&section=rule&rulenum=16&subrulenum=1

Rick is correct. However, absent a Local Rule, the player's best bet is to play a second ball under Rule 20.1c3.

R16.1c2 (2) Penalty Relief: Playing from Outside Bunker (Back-On-the-Line Relief). For one penalty stroke, the player may drop the original ball or another ball (see Rule 14.3) in a relief area based on a reference line going straight back from the hole through the spot of the original ball:

The player would have the remaining time (let's say 2 min 30 sec) to search for the ball? See 18.2a(1)/1 – Time Permitted for Search When Search Temporarily Interrupted A player finds and identifies his or her ball in high rough after a two minute search. The player leaves the area to get a club. When he or she returns, the ball cannot be found. The player has one minute to search before the ball becomes lost. The three-minute search time stopped when the ball was first found.

The Rule says, as you seem to know: Exceptions – When Relief Not Allowed for Ball Embedded in General Area: Relief under Rule 16.3b is not allowed: When interference by anything other than the ball being embedded makes the stroke clearly unreasonable (for example, when a player is unable to make a stroke because of where the ball lies in a bush). This is a common bit of fine print with many free relief situations.

The choices were R11.2, deliberate deflection of a moving ball or R10.1d, making a stroke at a moving ball. When Jimmy got to scoring the Committee were waiting. When asked what he was trying to do with those to passes at a moving ball, he replied that both were intended to put the ball in the hole. His reply steered the Committee to 10.1d who awarded him a 10, six strokes plus two times two for being a petulant brat. (Jimmy had already apologized to the other players in his group.) The Committee later revealed that they were pleased that it wasn't an 11.2, anticipating they might have had a hard time coming up with a penalty that they could prove.

Jimmy's tee shot went into right greenside bunker. His next shot from the right greenside bunker finished in the left greenside bunker. His shot from the left greenside bunker ended up four feet from the hole. His putt missed. Jimmy hustled and swiped the moving ball back toward the hole. The swipe missed but he backhanded the moving ball into the hole. The Committee had to figure this one out. What did they come with. And which Rules were in play? (I'm not making this up . . . it happened yesterday afternoon.)

I checked at The Onion . . . they confirm!

Surely some arithmetic is involved? Where did 50% come from?

"Principle" implies as underlying truth. Do you suppose England Golf were relying on some data?

England Golf can seem an "ivory tower" at times. 😲

Sounds as though you did fine. 🙂

I see it as a test for Committee members. Joes like me on the course with a badge and a radio don't need those headaches. :)

I'm with you Erik, I don't bother with it. The beast administered by PGA/USGA is more than enough for me. :)

Take a stab at it . . . rewrite the Rules in the language that would do away with the need for players to act honestly. Here's an easy start, take Rule 10 and reword it without the words deliberately and accidentally. Then ask around of your friends and see if that's the kind of game they'd like to play. :) ps TV golf is just a TV show, don't let its mandate to sell Viagra and Buicks cloud your vision of golf.

Right there in Rule 1, it says, All players are expected to play in the spirit of the game by acting with integrity – for example, by following the Rules, applying all penalties, and being honest in all aspects of play. Not "very fuzzy" at all.

Anyone conducting one's (or the nation's) business on Twitter is a twit.

My course has two holes where "over the green" can lose a ball. The Committee wisely marked them red, anticipating the difficulty of correctly applying E-5.

16.2 Dangerous Animal Condition a. When Relief Is Allowed A “dangerous animal condition” exists when a dangerous animal (such as poisonous snakes, stinging bees, alligators, fire ants or bears) near a ball could cause serious physical injury to the player if he or she had to play the ball as it lies. A player may take relief under Rule 16.2b from interference by a dangerous animal condition no matter where his or her ball is on the course, except that relief is not allowed: When playing the ball as it lies is clearly unreasonable because of something other than the dangerous animal condition (for example, when a player is unable to make a stroke because of where the ball lies in a bush), or When interference exists only because the player chooses a club, type of stance or swing or direction of play that is clearly unreasonable under the circumstances. b. Relief for Dangerous Animal Condition When there is interference by a dangerous animal condition: (1) When Ball Is Anywhere Except Penalty Area. The player may take relief under Rule 16.1b, c or d, depending on whether the ball is in the general area, in a bunker or on the putting green. (2) When Ball Is in Penalty Area. The player may take free relief or penalty relief: Free Relief: Playing from Inside Penalty Area. The player may take free relief under Rule 16.1b, except that the nearest point of complete relief and the relief area must be in the penalty area. Penalty Relief: Playing from Outside Penalty Area. The player may take penalty relief under Rule 17.1d. If there is interference by a dangerous animal condition where the ball would be played after taking this penalty relief outside the penalty area, the player may take further relief under (1) without additional penalty. For purposes of this Rule, the nearest point of complete relief means the nearest point (not nearer the hole) where the dangerous animal condition does not exist.

I can assure you, from personal experience, when and if the time comes for you to drop a ball, you'll have to stop and think about it. 😉 In all seriousness, when you're on the range warming up. Practice the drop about three times.

I emailed that to USGA and got the answer to a different question. They assured me that it was okay to use a line on the ball , , , like who didn't know that was permitted? I put it down to January workload. Erik, ask about ball-markers with lines. I cannot imagine they're treated any differently than balls with lines.

Chose a location on BOL that will likely result in drop-drop-place.

I think not marking on BOL could lead to gaming the drop.