Joan Cocksedge addresses club members on the Rules of Golf
Qualified rules official and tour referee Joan Cocksedge addressed around 45 members of the Senior and Ladies Section at a presentation in the Burgoyne Suite.
In an hour-long session interspersed with questions from the floor, Joan's slide and video show explained a host of rules, some of which surprised those present - most notably the rule covering the wall on the Carthagena 16th.
Conventional wisdom has it that you get a free drop if your ball is on the wall. But not necessarily! Joan explained that you only get a free drop if you can get your club to the ball. If your ball is on the wall but also in the middle of a gorse bush, i.e. you couldn't play it anyway, there is no free drop.
Surprise your friends with your newly-gained knowledge when you next play them!
And follow Joan's advice by downloading the free R&A App on your smart phone so you can refer to it on the course. The App also has a quiz section which makes learning the rules more fun.
Joan was presented with a bottle of champagne as a thankyou for her time and a collection was held afterwards to be divided equally between the Seniors' and Ladies' charities.
Joan contacted the Blog later with the following clarification, which is best explained in her own words:
"You mention in the Senior’s blog my bombshell about not necessarily getting free relief from the wall on 16, even though it is an Abnormal Course Condition. For clarification, it might be worth quoting the part of the Rule involved: Rule 16.1a (3) No Relief When Clearly Unreasonable.
To clarify further, Rule 16.1a applies to all ACCs where they affect the lie, stance and intended area of swing, so it could apply even if the ball is not actually 'on the wall’. In one of my photos it was next to the wall, affecting the area of swing, but it could be that the players stance is partly on the wall, also a case for relief."
The Blog is happy to make this clear
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