Is it a penalty to touch the sand in a bunker with a club prior to making a bunker shot?

I. Facts -A Touching Made in Frustration and Anger

Opponent RM found himself in the front portion of the green-side bunker on the 12th Hole at BMCC. His shot came out a tad heavy, and just missed reaching the putting surface. RM could only watch helplessly as the ball skittered around the edge of the embankment before dropping back into the same bunker and coming to rest some 10-12 feet away from the spot of the original shot.

As the ball fell back into the bunker, RM took a disgusted swipe at the bunker with his club raising a fine plume of sand. Foremost was of the opinion that the swipe was one of impetuous anger rather than one made as a calculated practice swing, as he certainly hadn’t made an attempt to retake a golf stance. In fact, his feet might have been moving as he swung.

Nevertheless, and regardless of intent, the swipe cleanly brushed through the sand, with a stroke that RM soon duplicated as he executed a perfect shot on his second attempt from the bunker … a shot which led to an up-and-down bogey five.

Foremost called a penalty as the players walked off the green.

Issue

May a player touch the sand with his club in anger after his shot, if the ball ends up in the same bunker?

Ruling

It is never a penalty to strike the sand in anger after a poor bunker shot R12.2b(2), or take a practice swing after a poor bunker shot for that matter, as long as the ball exits the bunker. However, if the ball comes back into the bunker, the normal bunker rule restrictions of R12.2b(1) apply to that ball in play as well, including the prohibition against making a practice swing.

The question, therefore, is not whether the strike was made in anger, but rather, whether it constituted a practice swing. This determination is, of course, a question of fact, and F is well-qualified to differentiate between a club “slam” and a “practice swing” as he has been a party to and witness to both.

F finds that the swipe … though unplanned, hasty, and off-balance … was more of a practice swing than a strike, as it was made with the arc, impact, and follow-through of a swing. A simple strike, in F’s opinion, would have resembled a blow into the sand such as the blow of a hammer, with no arc and no follow through. Furthermore, F has observed that a “slam” is often accompanied by a mild oath (i.e., “Rats”, or something), although F heard no such utterance from RM on this occasion, to his credit.

Nevertheless, F finds that RM incurred the General Penalty of Loss of Hole for a “practice swing” in violation of R 12.2.

II. Facts- A Touching By Accident

Reader TRe then reported that he had missed an easy putt on an up and down attempt from this same bunker on this same day, a miss he attributed to a nagging conscience. His discomfort was occasioned by his failure to self -report a very minor touching of the sand with his club as he took his alignment.

“Certainly this is not an infraction?”, he asked. “I barely nicked the sand. I wasn’t testing. I wasn’t making a practice swing and it wasn’t contact during a backswing. It was unintentional, wholly accidental, and had no bearing on the shot. Weren’t the New Rules of Golf liberalized for the incidental touching of sand in a bunker? It makes no sense to penalize someone for such a minor, insignificant touching!”

F asked where the touching had occurred. “Probably two or three inches behind the ball”, said TRe.

Ruling

Indeed, the New Rules did liberalize a touching in the sand, to some extent, although certain restrictions do still apply. Most noticeably, players can now use a club to remove Loose Impediments or Movable Obstructions from a bunker, or they can lay clubs down or lean on a club, so long as they are not testing the sand, or improving their stance or lie.

Unfortunately, F finds the TRe should , also, have incurred the General Penalty under R 2.2 which is Loss of Hole in Match Play, or a two-stroke penalty in Stroke Play.

While he was correct in pointing out that a touching of the club is generally now allowed if not made in testing the sand, or making a practice swing, or in the process of the backswing, he missed a final restriction. A player ,also, cannot touch with his club “the area right in front of or right behind the ball” (R 12.2b(1)).

When asked, TRe disclosed that his “touching” had occurred two to three inches “behind” the ball. F would point out that a couple of inches “behind” the ball is precisely the target most instructors would suggest as a proper entry point for a bunker shot … so ,perhaps, this Rule does make a little sense!

TRe’s nagging conscience was warranted!

A Shout-Out!

Readers, I thought you might enjoy the recent article linked below from the Georgia State Golf Magazine on your fellow-Reader, JH. I’m sure you will be delighted, and relieved, to learn that someone who actually knows something about the Rules of Golf is keeping an on F! Congrats to JH!

“Never a Dull Moment for Rules Official Hatcher”.

As usual, all comments or corrections are welcome!

Respectfully submitted,

F