Rule #5 – The General Area

Know the rules with M&M – Rule #5 – The General Area

“The General Area” is a new term introduced in the 2019 rules revision and replaces the term “Through the green”.

The General Area applies to any place on the golf course that is not part of the other four defined areas:

• Bunkers
• Penalty Areas (previously known as hazards)
• The Putting Green of the hole being player
• The Teeing Area

Hence, The General Area includes fairways, rough, fringe or collar, teeing areas and putting greens not on the hole being played and wooded or other nondescript places or things not inside a penalty area.

As per the aforementioned, Teeing Area’s and Putting Greens are only such on the hole currently being played. If a players ball comes to rest on a Putting Green or Teeing Area of a hole not being currently played it is deemed to be in the General Area. It is also in the General Area if a ball comes to rest on a tee box of the hole being played but is not the teeing area from which the hole was started. A ball that comes to rest in these circumstances must be played as it lies with the exception of a ball that comes to rest on a wrong green. A player MUST take free relief for a ball at rest on a wrong green. This relief must be within one club length of the nearest point of relief no closer to the hole.

Another common consideration for play within the general area is: How to proceed with an embedded ball.

Relief Is Allowed: Under Rule 16.3b only when a player’s ball is embedded in the general area. There is no relief under this rule if a ball is embedded anywhere other than the general area. However, if the ball is embedded on the putting green the player may mark the spot of the ball, li\ and clean the ball, repair the damage caused by the ball’s impact and replace the ball on its original spot as described in Rule 13. Furthermore, a player’s ball is embedded only if:

• It is in it’s own pitch-mark made as a result of the player’s previous stroke, and
• Part of the ball is below the level/surface of the ground.

If the player is uncertain whether their ball rests in it’s own pitch-mark or in a pitch-mark made by another ball, the player may treat the ball as embedded if it is reasonable to conclude from the available information that the ball is in its own pitch-mark.

A ball is not embedded if it is below the level /surface of the ground as a result of anything other than the player’s previous stroke, such as when:

• The ball is driven straight into the ground (by the previous stroke), without becoming airborne,
  or
• The ball was dropped in taking relief under a Rule.

Relief for an embedded ball in the general area may be taken without penalty by dropping the ball within one club length of the spot right behind where the ball is embedded, no closer to the hole and must remain in the general area.

As always, we hope you have a great week on the links and wish you all straight drives and one putts.

Next week, we will review Rule #7 – Ball Search: Finding and Identifying Ball.

Until then,

Mario Paradis & Michael Alderman