Yellow stakes???????

[wantobegolfer]

Ok so white stakes O.B. Red stakes dont lose your distance. Yellow stakes anyone???

[Colby]

Red stakes are actually lateral (water) hazards, while yellow stakes are regular water hazards.

[Farzin]

A lateral water hazard is defined by red stakes or lines.
Drop 2 club lenghts from where the ball last crossed the margin and add a stroke.

Regular water hazard is defined by yellow stakes.
play the ball as it lies without penalty.
Take a stroke and distance penalty.
Drop with penalty straight back on a line from the the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin.

Hope it helps.

[BC MIST]

A lateral water hazard is defined by red stakes or lines.
Drop 2 club lenghts from where the ball last crossed the margin and add a stroke.

Regular water hazard is defined by yellow stakes.
play the ball as it lies without penalty.
Take a stroke and distance penalty.
Drop with penalty straight back on a line from the the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin.

For the lateral water hazard, red staked area, there are 3 additional options:
1. stroke and distance
2. drop the ball on a line from the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard.
3. drop a ball outside the hazard at a point on the opposite margin of the hazard, equidistant from the hole. In other words, if there is a creek running parallel to the hole that is declared a LWH(red stakes), then you may play from either side of the hazard, dropping the ball within 2 club lengths of the point where it last crossed the margin of the hazard, or on the other side of the creek, 2 club lengths from the opposite margin. Penalty in all cases: 1 stroke.

[skull]

A lateral water hazard is defined by red stakes or lines.
Drop 2 club lenghts from where the ball last crossed the margin and add a stroke.

Regular water hazard is defined by yellow stakes.
play the ball as it lies without penalty.
Take a stroke and distance penalty.
Drop with penalty straight back on a line from the the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin.

Hope it helps.

Actually Farzin, you have the descriptions backwards. Red is lateral, but then
play the ball as it lies without penalty.
Take a stroke and distance penalty.
Drop with penalty straight back on a line from the the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin.

[Farzin]

Actually Farzin, you have the descriptions backwards. Red is lateral, but then
play the ball as it lies without penalty.
Take a stroke and distance penalty.
Drop with penalty straight back on a line from the the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin.

Skull: Niether the descreption nor the options are backward. A ball in a water hazard is like a ball in a bunker. If you can play it without touching the water with your club other than at swing through, then help yourself.
A stroke and distance penalty can be taken at any time during the play.

For the lateral water hazard, red staked area, there are 3 additional options:
1. stroke and distance
2. drop the ball on a line from the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard.
3. drop a ball outside the hazard at a point on the opposite margin of the hazard, equidistant from the hole. In other words, if there is a creek running parallel to the hole that is declared a LWH(red stakes), then you may play from either side of the hazard, dropping the ball within 2 club lengths of the point where it last crossed the margin of the hazard, or on the other side of the creek, 2 club lengths from the opposite margin. Penalty in all cases: 1 stroke.

# 1 option: A stroke and distance penalty can be taken at any time during the play.
# 2 option: for lateral water hazard sounds silly. One may get drowned doing that.
#3 option: I had it for discussion not long ago click me
Gary had a complete reply to it and you are right.

[skull]

What i meant was that the RED stakes, the Lateral hazard, is where you can go back as far as you want keeping the pin in line. I don't think you can do that with Yellow stakes.
Cheers !

[BC MIST]

What i meant was that the RED stakes, the Lateral hazard, is where you can go back as far as you want keeping the pin in line. I don't think you can do that with Yellow stakes.
Cheers !

Yes, you can.

Yellow stakes, water hazard gives you 2 options to drop. Stroke and distance + drop a ball on a line connecting the pin and the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard. Penalty - 1 stroke.

Red Stakes, Lateral water hazard gives you 4 options. The two mentioned above + drop a ball within two club lengths of the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard, and drop a ball within two club lengths from a point on the opposite side of the margin, equidistant from the hole. Penalty 1 stroke.

[Gary Hill]

Just think of it as: With red stakes I get EXTRA options

[golfmania]

Question on the origin of the rules: who determined the need for yellow stakes AND red stakes...why not just have red stakes...

[Kilroy]

1	You must Tee your Ball within a Club length of the Hole.
2	Your Tee must be upon the ground.
3	You are not to change the Ball which you strike off the Tee.
4	You are not to remove Stones, Bones, or any Break-club for the sake of playing your Ball, except upon the fair Green, and that only within a Club length of your Ball.
5	If your Ball come among Water, or any watery filth, you are at liberty to take out your Ball, and bringing it behind the hazard, and teeing it, you may play it with any club and allow your Adversary a stroke for so getting out your Ball.
6	If your Balls be found anywhere touching one another, you are to lift the first Ball till you play the last.
7	At holing, you are to play your Ball honestly for the Hole, and not play upon your Adversary's Ball, not lying in your way to the Hole.
8	If you should lose your Ball by its being taken up, or in any other way, you are to go back to the spot where you struck last, and drop another Ball, and allow your Adversary a stroke for your misfortune.
9	No man, at Holing his Ball, is to be allowed to mark to the Hole with his Club or anything else.
10	If a Ball be stop'd by any person, Horse, Dog, or anything else, the Ball so stop'd must be played where it lyes.
11	If you draw your Club in order to strike, and proceed as far in the stroke as to be bringing down your Club - if then your Club shall break in any way, it is to be accounted a stroke.
12	He whose Ball lyes farthest from the Hole is obliged to play first.
13	Neither Trench, Ditch, nor Dyke made for the preservation of the Links, nor the Scholars' holes, nor the Soldiers' lines, shall be accounted a Hazard, but the Ball is to be taken out, Teed, and played with any iron Club.

[Gary Hill]

why not just have red stakes...

Water Hazards (yellow stakes or lines) are bodies of water that generally flow across (perpendicular to) the fairway.

The object of the water hazard is to force the player to play over the hazard. If the ball lands in the water hazard, the player must drop a ball BEHIND the hazard and try again.

However, sometimes the body of water follows a line parallel to the fairway, like the ocean alongside the 18th hole at Pebble Beach. Of course, it would be impossible to drop a ball BEHIND the hazard (Hawaii), so special rules had to be made to distinguish water hazards that are generally parallel to the fairway from those water hazards that are generally perpendicular to the fairway.

Lateral water hazards (red stakes or lines) are water hazards that are impossible or impracticable to drop behind.

Therefore, if all hazards were lateral (red) water hazards, the player could ALWAYS drop on the "green side" of a perpendicular water hazard and never have to actually play over the hazard.

BTW - There is no such thing as a "regular water hazard". There are only water hazards and lateral water hazards.

Also, there is no such thing as a water hazard without water.
A water hazard is defined as an open waterway (although it is not required to have water in it at all times).

The Rules prohibit the marking of rough, trees, bush, rocks, etc. as water hazards.
So the next time you see a bunch of trees with red stakes around them, complain to the management.

[NoBack]

So the next time you see a bunch of trees with red stakes around them, complain to the management.

You not only know all the rules but you're a funny guy too???

[Ruskie]

The Rules prohibit the marking of rough, trees, bush, rocks, etc. as water hazards.
So the next time you see a bunch of trees with red stakes around them, complain to the management.

Well, I guess that makes Mont Cascades an illegal course - all their forests are marked with red stakes.

[The Shtick]

Well, I guess that makes Mont Cascades an illegal course - all their forests are marked with red stakes.

Yep, as are many other courses too....

Many courses simply put up red stakes on tree lines to help encourage faster play. If you take for example #3 at Cascades the left side (trees) is red staked. It simply lets the golfer have the option to not re-load from the tee.

It definetly helps speed up play- especially on courses where tournaments are plentiful.

[jvincent]

The Rules prohibit the marking of rough, trees, bush, rocks, etc. as water hazards.
So the next time you see a bunch of trees with red stakes around them, complain to the management.

Is there a rule prohibiting marking "environmentally sensitive" areas?

They are often swampy, so I guess could count as water, but sometimes they aren't.

[Gary Hill]

Is there a rule prohibiting marking "environmentally sensitive" areas?

Environmentally-sensitive areas are areas in which play is REQUIRED to be prohibited by an authorized agency (Environment Canada, Ducks Unlimited,etc.).

The Committee has no power to determine which areas qualify as environmentally-sensitive areas.

In most cases, entering an environmentally-sensitive area to retrieve your ball is breaking the law.