You’re probably short of ideas when you resort to talking about weather on your blog, but I was at home last night wondering if the Monday divisions were going to be able to get their rounds finished yesterday afternoon. Word was that there was a cold front approaching from the west, and during the month of May, that can often bring thunderstorms, hail and the potential for tornados (none of which is conducive to playing a round of golf. The more I thought about weather, the more I realized that although I’ve touched on the subject in a number of other blog entries, I’d never really devoted a whole entry to the subject – so…. I’ll do so now.
Weather forecasting in the age of the internet and smart phones means that you’re virtually guaranteed to have access to someone’s daily or even hourly forecast and radar images. Usually a day in advance of playing a round of golf I’ll check the weather and plan accordingly. For good luck (and even on sunny days), I always pack my rain gear, rain gloves, and an umbrella. I also try to play all year round, and I usually have a box with a variety of gear to include long underwear, a couple of pullovers, mittens, a couple extra pair of socks, a vest, etc. By doing some prep work, you may find (as I do) that a day spent on a golf course in marginal weather conditions means a quick round of 18 holes (since you won’t be competing with all of the usual fair weather golfers, and no one wants to play slow in bad conditions). In terms of league play, be ready to play on every league night. If the course is open, we’re expected to play.
Usually on the afternoon of each league night when weather is an issue the commish will send out a notice regarding play for that evening to your captain. Please don’t badger the Ruggles staff with questions regarding play that night – wait for the commissioner’s message. Sometimes the course may still be open, but a big storm system due to arrive that evening may force our hand and we may not play. In cases like those, the Ruggles staff will not know if the league will be playing. If no message has come to your captain, come to the course and be ready to play. If a situation arises that unexpectedly causes us to evaluate play for that night, representatives from each team will be polled to determine if we play that night.
Sometimes play starts, but a pop-up thunderstorm or lightning will approach the course. If the Ruggles staff feel that play should be halted, a siren will be blown from the clubhouse. At that point, each group on the course should decide if they can complete their current hole safely. If they can, finish out that hole and immediately proceed to the clubhouse for shelter. If you can’t finish a hole safely, mark the location of your ball and proceed to the clubhouse. In some cases, the course may reopen prior to darkness and you could go back and finish your round, but in my experience, that’s the exception. In any case, before leaving the course, drop your scorecards (even though they might be incomplete) in the box.
So, for incomplete rounds, how are your scorecards scored (since a complete 9-hole score is required for handicap, team net, and individual matches)? Well, first, the league handicapper has to decide if the night’s play has been “rained out”. To count as a completed league night, 80% of the teams must complete at least 5 holes. If so, then the league handicapper applies some scoring magic to simulate the completion of the nine holes for each competitor, but it’s really only the holes that were actually completed that will count for team net and your individual matches, and the team hole scores will essentially be halved for each team for the holes that aren’t played. If you were able to complete 7 holes, your 9-hole score (real scores plus simulated) will be reflected in your next handicap calculation. Otherwise, the round doesn’t count for handicap purposes. At any rate, you may have some idea about which team won that night, but you probably won’t know the score until it’s posted on the website later in the week. For the teams that complete at least 7 holes, their player’s handicaps will be updated.
If you’re still awake (I know, talk of fuzzy math tends to put me to sleep, too), we’ll talk a bit about playing during inclement weather (a subject I’ve touched on a few times before). After or during a rainstorm, you may run into some areas on the course that have not drained well (hopefully, that’s not the greens). In cases of areas through the green (this excludes hazards and the green you’re playing), in the event that your ball lies in visible water or upon taking your stance brings visible water up around your feet, you are entitled to seek relief from what we call casual water (which is an abnormal ground condition that results in a temporary immovable obstruction). Find the nearest point of relief that does not bring up casual water when you take a stance, and drop within a club length of that spot, no closer to the hole (and this drop cannot be onto a putting green).
It gets a bit trickier if the casual water (or casual water between your ball and the hole) appears on your putting green. If you’ve ever tried to putt through a big puddle between your ball and the hole, you’ll know that it takes considerable force to push a ball through standing water. What do you do in this case? Well, in general, you will probably want to seek relief from casual water to avoid interference on your line of putt, and you will once again find the point of closest relief that will not make you drop onto casual water and does not force you to play through a puddle. However, this may move you off of the putting surface (see diagram and explanation below from the USGA), and may require you to chip the ball rather than putt it.
25-1b/10.5
Casual Water on Putting Green; Whether Player Entitled to Relief for Intervention If Ball Is on Green and Nearest Point of Relief Is Off Green
Q. In Diagram X, a player's ball lies at Point 1 in casual water on the putting green. In Diagram Y, a player's ball lies at Point 1 on the putting green with casual water intervening on his line of putt.
Under Rule 25-1b(iii), the player is not entitled to place the ball at Point 4, which is on the green, because Point 4 is farther from Point 1 than either Point 2 or Point 3, both of which are off the green. It would seem that Point 2 may be the correct point because there is no relief if a ball lies off the green and casual water on the green intervenes on the line of play. In taking relief must the player place the ball at Point 2 or Point 3?
A.Since, in both diagrams, the ball lies on the putting green, the player is entitled to relief with respect to the lie of the ball and intervention on his line. Accordingly, in either case the player must place the ball at Point 3, the nearest point which affords complete relief with respect to both situations.
Then there’s casual water in a bunker, and I’ve had some famous run-ins with this rule in the past that I’ve talked about before. Remember, bunkers are hazards and you really shouldn’t want to be in one – they’re designed to be penal. If you find that your ball is located in casual water in a bunker, you can certainly play the ball as it lies, but you are entitled to free relief if there is an area of visible sand in the bunker that is no closer to the hole. If the bunker is completely full of water, you can drop in the bunker in an area that affords the most complete relief from the casual water, but this location must still be in the bunker. This may be wet sand – you don’t get relief from that. Another option available to you (since your ball is in is to treat the bunker like a normal yellow-staked water hazard and take a penalty stroke to drop the ball (no closer to the hole) on a line from the flagstick through where your ball laid in the bunker going back as far as you like on that line.
How about wind blowing your ball to a new location (most likely case is a ball on the putting green)? If an action of yours did not move the ball, you’re stuck with the new spot. If that’s closer to the hole, great!
How about hail stones on the green? Hopefully, they’ll be melting fairly fast, but in any case, snow and naturally occurring ice are EITHER casual water or lose impediments AT THE OPTION OF THE PLAYER. So, you can treat those hailstones just like you would a puddle of water on the green and seek relief, or you can pick them up or rake them up on your intended line of play (the back of a bunker rake would probably work best). Keep in mind that dew (or even frost) is not casual water, ice or snow, so you get no relief from that.
As always, I hope this has removed some of the fog from having to play in non-optimal conditions. I’d encourage all of you to take some time and play on a day when the weather isn’t optimal for golf. The challenge will make you a better player and will give you an advantage in a match. Remember, we all play the same course at the same time, so the player that approaches non-optimal conditions with a positive attitude definitely holds an advantage over his opponent.