Lakewood Men’s Golf Club will be observing the following local rules for all LMGC events held at Lakewood Country Club.  For events conducted away from Lakewood, or non-LMGC events, consult with the tournament director regarding any local rules being observed.

 

 

Alternative to Stroke and Distance for Lost Ball or Ball Out of Bound

Model Local Rule E-5. The purpose of this Local Rule is to provide an extra relief option that allows a player to play on without returning to the location of the previous stroke when a ball is lost or out of bounds.This option allows the player to drop in a large area between the point where the ball is estimated to have come to rest or gone out of bounds and the edge of the fairway of the hole being played that is not nearer the hole. The player gets two penalty strokes when using this relief option. This means that the relief is comparable to what could have been achieved if the player had taken stroke-and-distance relief. This Local Rule cannot be used for an unplayable ball, or for a ball that is known or virtually certain to be in a penalty area. If a provisional ball is played and neither the original ball nor the provisional ball can be found, then the Local Rule may be applied for the provisional ball that cannot be found. For more information, click here. 

 

 

Distance Measuring

In LMGC competitions a player may obtain distance information by use of a distance-measuring device. If, during a stipulated round, a player uses a distance-measuring device to gauge or measure other conditions that might affect his play (e.g., elevation changes, wind speed, etc.), the player is in breach of Rule 14-3.

 

Aeration holes

On the putting green, a ball that comes to rest in or on an aeration hole may be placed at the nearest spot not nearer the hole that avoids the situation.

***Aeration holes other than on the green will be handled on a case by case basis.  When tournaments occur during aeration times, the tournament committee will notify players if relief will be granted.  Without said notification, there is no relief granted for aeration holes in fairways or rough.

 

Embedded Ball

Through the green, a ball that is embedded in its own pitch-mark may be lifted, cleaned and dropped, without penalty, as near as possible to the spot where it lay but not nearer the hole. The ball when dropped must first strike a part of the course through the green.

 

Staked Trees

Protection of young trees identified by stakes / ropes attached to the tree:  If such a tree interferes with a player's stance or area of his intended swing, the ball must be lifted, without penalty, and dropped in accordance with the procedure prescribed in Rule 24-2b (Immovable Obstruction).  

*Relief is only granted for stance and swing – not intended ball flight.

*Exception: A player may not obtain relief under this Local Rule if (a) interference by anything other than such a tree makes the stroke clearly impracticable or (b) interference by such a tree would occur only through the use of a clearly unreasonable stroke or an unnecessarily abnormal stance, swing or direction of play.

 

Stones in bunkers

Stones in bunkers are movable obstructions (Rule 24-1 applies). 

 

Driving Range Fence and Poles

The driving range fence is considered a boundary fence, but the area between the black poles will not be considered out of bounds, but free relief IS NOT granted from either the poles or the fence.