West Seattle Golf Club - Winter Conditions Explained

 

It can get rough going out there in spots during the winter. Please review the WSGC procedure so everyone can help each other out and enjoy the game. Knowing these rules will help you. If you have questions please E Mail us at tournaments@westseattlegolfclub.org -

 

Preferred Lies - If “Winter Rules” are in effect by posting at the golf course or stipulated in the tournament rules, a ball lying through the green may be lifted without penalty and cleaned. Before lifting the ball, the player must mark its position. Having lifted the ball, the player must place it on a spot within 6 inches of and not nearer the hole than where it originally lay, that is not in a penalty area and not on a putting green.  A player may place the ball only once, and it is in play when it has been placed. If the ball when placed comes to rest on the spot on which it is placed and it subsequently moves, there is no penalty and the ball must be played as it lies, unless the provisions of any other Rule apply.  If the player fails to mark the position of the ball before lifting it or moves the ball in any other manner, such as rolling it with a club, the player incurs a penalty of one stroke.

 

Ball in Abnormal Ground Condition Not Found – Most members of the group must agree that the ball has been lost in the abnormal condition, defined by the WSGC Tournament Committee as “any casual water, excessively muddy area, ground under repair or hole, cast or runway on the course made by a burrowing animal, a reptile or a bird. A ball must be dropped at the nearest point of relief from where it was determined lost, no nearer the hole. This is our “Mud Ball” rule. Everyone in the group should watch each other’s shots.

 

Note - Nearest point of relief is not always back toward the fairway. It is also understood that in some spots the nearest point of relief might be some distance away due to the extent of the muddy area. We ask all players in the group to use their best judgement and to remember to protect the other players in the field.