RULES 101

Golf Ball Lands in Mud

Oh no!  My ball landed in a mucky, muddy spot in the fairway or rough (not in a penalty area, green, or bunker)!  Do I have to play it from there?  While we are playing under winter rules, you have the option to lift, clean and place the ball within a club length.  But what if that's not enough?

Here are your options:

1.  Ground under repair - free relief.  Is the area marked as "ground under repair" with a sign, stakes or a white line?  If so, you find your nearest point of complete relief, and drop (from your knees) the ball within one club length of that point.  Hopefully, that will result in a good lie.

2.  Embedded ball - free relief.  Is the ball embedded?  A ball is considered embedded when the ball is in its own pitch mark (divot) from your previous stroke and part of the ball is below the level of the ground.  This usually means that the ball is touching dirt.  See the diagram below for further clarification.   

If you need to lift your ball to determine if it is embedded, you must first mark the ball and you are not allowed to clean the ball,  If it is determined to NOT be embedded, you must return it to its original spot without cleaning it and play it as it lies.  However, if the ball IS embedded, you can clean it and take free relief, by finding reference point right behind the ball and then dropping the ball (from your knees) within one club length of that point (no closer to the hole).

3.  Standing Water - free relief.  Your next option is when the ball is in standing water.  If, when you take your stance, you can see water pooling up around your shoes, you are in standing water.  You are entitled to free relief from that abnormal course condition.  You find the nearest point of relief where the standing water does not interfere with your lie and stance, and drop the ball within one club length of this spot (no closer to the hole).  Spoiler alert - you might still be in a muddy condition, but hopefully better than before.

4.  Unplayable Lie - one penalty stroke.  If you determine that your ball is unplayable, you can take one penalty stroke and a) drop the ball within two club lengths of its current position, b) take stroke-and-distance relief by returning to the spot from which you last hit the ball or c) dropping the ball on a line between the flagstick and the ball's original position, going back as far as you like. 

Remember that if you take advantage of any of these options, you can still, under winter rules with the ball in the general area, lift, clean and place the ball within a club length.