Out of Bounds...Obstructions??

[Carlos]

If your ball is inside the out of bounds marking but there is a fence that obstructs your swing that is also out of bounds what are your options....

[NoBack]

I beleive the answer is one word.................. Hit!



Gary???

[Carlos]

what if on your backswing you damage or dislodge a piece of fence or knock out the out of bound stake, is there a penaly for it?

[Gary Hill]

your ball is inside the out of bounds marking but there is a fence that obstructs your swing that is also out of bounds what are your options....

Specifically excepted as Obstructions are:

a. Objects defining out of bounds, such as walls, fences, stakes and railings; AND

b. Any part of an immovable artificial object which is out of bounds.. (eg. fence )

You get no free relief from objects defining out of bounds or immovable artificial objects which are out of bounds. Therefore, you would have to play the ball as it lies or declare the ball unplayable.

what if on your backswing you damage or dislodge a piece of fence or knock out the out of bound stake, is there a penalty for it?

Rule 13-2: (chopped for clarity, incomplete)
A player shall not improve or allow to be improved: the position or lie of his ball, the area of his intended stance or swing, his line of play or a reasonable extension of that line beyond the hole, or the area in which he is to drop or place a ball by any of the following actions:
moving, bending or breaking anything growing or fixed (including immovable obstructions and objects defining out of bounds), ...

except as follows: ... in making a stroke or the backward movement of his club for a stroke ...

PENALTY FOR BREACH OF RULE: Match play - Loss of hole; Stroke play - Two strokes.

You have to be careful with terminology when dealing with the rules.

"Backswing" actually has no meaning under the rules because if you stop, it is no longer the backward movement for a stroke.

Therefore, the explaination of the above rules snippet is:

You are penalized if you move, bend, or break anything fixed.
You are NOT penalized if it occurs during the stroke or the backward movement for the stroke.

FYI - Hazard stakes ARE obstructions and may be removed, but be careful, as we have learned above, if you break the hazard stake while removing it, it is a penalty.

[Carlos]

so if a stake is in the way of your stroke or intended line of play you can remove the stake and replace it, as long as you don't bend or break it???

[Gary Hill]

so if a stake is in the way of your stroke or intended line of play you can remove the stake and replace it, as long as you don't bend or break it???

NO - if the stake is an Out of Bounds marker.
YES - if the stake is a Water Hazard marker.

1. Objects defining out of bounds are NOT obstructions and are deemed to be FIXED.

2. Objects defining the margins of water hazards are obstructions.

3. An obstruction (eg water hazard stake) is a movable obstruction if it may be moved without unreasonable effort, without unduly delaying play and without causing damage. Otherwise it is an immovable obstruction.