Improving your stance

[gbower]

John and I both hit our tee shots down the right side of the fairway and mine is just a foot in the rough and John's is a foot or two in the fairway right beside mine. John hits first and takes a monster divot that blows apart. Now when I address the ball I'm standing in the crater that he just created. Do I have any options in this situation or do I have to stand in this mess?

[Sakuraba]

I think you are stuck with the mess. Jvincent should take a page out of Moe Norman's book: divots are supposed to be bacon strips not pork chops.

You could always ask him to fix it, I think.

[gbower]

Noone else going to bite on this one.
I am actually entitled to restore the area to the way it was as John messed up the area of my stance which was fine before he took his shot. If the original area of intended stance could be easily restored it may be restored without penalty and as this divot blew apart I may place my ball, without penalty, on the nearest spot within one club length of the original lie that provides the most similar lie and area of intended stance and must not be nearer the hole and must not be in a hazard. (Decision 13-2/8.7)

[BC MIST]

I am actually entitled to restore the area to the way it was as John messed up the area of my stance which was fine before he took his shot. If the original area of intended stance could be easily restored it may be restored without penalty and as this divot blew apart I may place my ball, without penalty, on the nearest spot within one club length of the original lie that provides the most similar lie and area of intended stance and must not be nearer the hole and must not be in a hazard. (Decision 13-2/8.7)

While I am not a proponent of dropping out of divots, if I am in the group following you and my ball lands in your divot and I have to stand in John's, I am SOL. Better to be a fellow competitor than a competitor.

[jvincent]

Jerry's not tall enough to hit out of one of my divots so he should definitely get relief.

[Sakuraba]

I didn't know that I could get relief.

Would it still be ok, (I would think it would be the norm) for John to voluntarily replace his divot? Would it be ok for me to ask him to do it?

[gbower]

You could put the divot back as far as I know as that's restoring the course back to the way it was before you hit the shot. I would ask as he may wish to not have it replaced and that is his choice.

[AAA]

The Decision does not specify that anyone in particular has to restore it. It simply says 'the area ..... may be restored'.