Please find below, the fifth installment of The Rules of Golf series. This segment covers penalty areas (Rule 17). The back-on-the-line relief procedure has changed from previous years, so please pay special attention to that section.
When a Player May Take Penalty Relief for a Ball in a Penalty Area
A player may take penalty relief for a ball in a penalty area when any part of the ball touches the ground or anything else inside the penalty area, is above the edge of the penalty area or the player is virtually certain the ball is inside the penalty area (95% or greater certainty).
Options for Ball in a Penalty Area
When a ball is in a penalty area, the player may play the ball as it lies or take relief under penalty of 1 stroke using the following options with the original ball or another ball:
1) Stroke-and-Distance Relief (Yellow and Red Penalty Areas):
The player may play a ball from where the previous stroke was made.
If the ball was played from inside the teeing area, the player must play from anywhere inside the teeing area and may place the ball on a tee.
If the previous stroke was made from the general area, penalty area or bunker, the ball must be dropped in the following relief area:
· Reference Point: The spot where the previous stroke was made
Size of Relief Area: Measure one club-length from the reference point, but ball must be in the same area of the course as the reference point (e.g. general area) and no nearer to the hole than the reference point.
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