Red vs. Yellow Penalty Areas
Know Your Relief Options
Red and yellow penalty areas are treated almost identically under the Rules of Golf, which can make the difference between them easy to forget.
Both allow stroke-and-distance relief and back-on-the-line relief for one penalty stroke. A red penalty area, however, gives you one additional option: lateral relief.
Stroke and Distance: Play another ball from where your previous stroke was made.
Back-on-the-Line Relief: Keep the estimated point where the ball last crossed the edge of the penalty area between the hole and the spot where you drop. You may go back on that line as far as you wish.
Lateral Relief (Red Penalty Areas Only): Drop within two club-lengths of the estimated point where the ball last crossed the edge of the penalty area, no nearer the hole.
The easy way to remember it: Red and yellow penalty areas have the same basic relief options, but red gives you one more—lateral relief.
Immovable Obstructions
When Do You Get Free Relief?
An obstruction is any artificial object on the golf course, except an integral object or a boundary object.
Common examples include artificially surfaced cart paths, buildings, rain shelters, sprinkler heads, drains, irrigation and control boxes, benches, signs, golf carts, and other artificial objects.
You generally get free relief when an immovable obstruction interferes with the lie of your ball, your normal stance, or the area of your intended swing.
For example, if your ball comes to rest next to a sprinkler control box and the box interferes with your normal swing, you may take free relief. The same applies if you would have to stand on an artificially surfaced cart path to make your normal stroke.
An obstruction that only interferes with your line of play generally does not provide free relief when your ball is off the putting green.
How to Take Free Relief
Find the Nearest Point of Complete Relief
When free relief is available, use these three steps:
1. Find the nearest point of complete relief.
Identify the nearest spot, no closer to the hole, where the obstruction no longer interferes with your ball, normal stance, or intended swing.
2. Measure one club-length.
From that reference point, measure one club-length to establish your relief area.
3. Drop the ball.
Drop your original ball or another ball within the relief area, no nearer the hole.
Remember: The nearest point of complete relief is not necessarily the best place to play from. Relief could leave you in longer grass, behind a tree, or with a more difficult shot.
Boundary Objects — No Free Relief
Out-of-Bounds Fences, Walls & Stakes
Question:
I have interference from an out-of-bounds fence, stake, or wall. What are my options?
Answer:
You do not get free relief from an object that defines or marks the boundary of the course.
Boundary fences, walls, and stakes are boundary objects. They are not treated like ordinary obstructions such as cart paths, buildings, sprinkler heads, or penalty-area stakes.
You may not move a boundary object simply because it interferes with your stance or swing.
Your options are:
• Play the ball as it lies.
• Take stroke-and-distance relief for one penalty stroke and play again from where your previous stroke was made.
• Declare the ball unplayable and proceed under Rule 19 for one penalty stroke, provided the ball is not in a penalty area.
Important: A white boundary stake is treated differently from a red or yellow penalty-area stake. A boundary stake may not be moved to make your stroke easier.
