USGA |
After a lengthy rain delay during the final round of the U. S. Open at Oakmont in June, Sam Burns found himself in a tough spot. His drive landed with a splash in the 15th fairway and didn’ t roll out, coming to rest in a wet, low area. Burns summoned a Rules official to see if he was entitled to relief from temporary water but was denied— twice. Forced to play his ball as it lay, he hit a poor approach and eventually made double bogey, dropping him out of contention. We’ re not here to relitigate whether Burns should have gotten relief, but the situation does highlight a common scenario for the everyday golfer: When is free relief allowed from temporary water?
Temporary water is one of four defined abnormal course conditions that allow free relief. The others are animal holes, ground under repair and immovable obstructions.
In the case of temporary water, that means any accumulation of water on the surface of the ground( such as puddles from rain or irrigation, or an overflow from a body of water) that:
• Is not in a penalty area, and
• Can be seen before or after the player takes a stance( without pressing down excessively with their feet).
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It is not enough for the ground to be merely wet, muddy or soft, or for the water to appear only momentarily as the player steps on the ground. A visible accumulation must remain either before or after the stance is taken.
Sometimes, temporary water is obvious— like when it pools at the bottom of a bunker after a storm, or when pond-like puddles form in the fairway. But the Burns situation shows there’ s some nuance in determining when a player is actually entitled relief.
Rule 16.1a lays out when relief is allowed from an abnormal course condition. Interference exists when any one of these is true:
• Your ball touches or is in or on an abnormal course condition,
• An abnormal course condition physically interferes with your area of intended stance or area of intended swing, or
• Only when your ball is on the putting green, an abnormal course condition on or off the putting green intervenes on your line of play. If you take your normal stance and water briefly appears but quickly disappears, you’ re not entitled to relief. The ground may be soft or wet, but unless the water remains visible around your feet
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after taking your normal stance, free relief is not allowed. In Burns’ case, Rules officials determined that the temporary water did not affect his lie or stance enough to warrant relief. A few related clarifications:
• Dew and frost do not count as temporary water.
• Snow and natural ice( excluding frost) may be treated as either loose impediments or temporary water.
• Manufactured ice is considered an obstruction.
For full details on your relief options from temporary water or another abnormal course condition, see Rule 16.1.
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