Relief situations little understood

Last weekend we witnessed some of the best amateur golfers going head-to-head at Muthaiga Golf Club during the Nairobi District Foursomes.

Some of the golfers were laid-back with no grit.

They almost looked like they were playing a weekend friendly round with no real determination to win their matches. On the other end of the spectrum were the ones who brought with them a swashbuckling, dogged determination attitude that was so entertaining to watch.

This was more evident especially with the last four pairs.

The most entertaining pair was the team from Golf Park of Elias Indeche and John Mburu. Indeche, who wears his heart on his sleeve, provided a lot of comic relief when he celebrated his wins or when he tossed his cap in disgust on losing a hole.

The eventual winners, Edwin Mudanyi and Robinson Owiti, had very tough matches right from their first game on Saturday, to their last against Alfred Nandwa and Samuel Njoroge. They deserved the win.

There was no shortage of talent among the golfers who participated. What was very evidently lacking was the knowledge of how to correctly take advantage of relief situations whenever they arose.

I watched as some of the golfers got into areas where they were entitled to free relief but failed to take full advantage to get a better lie. What I quickly realised is that the majority of golfers are not familiar with the correct procedure of taking a free relief.

The two most common situations where the golfers get free relief are when an abnormal ground condition or an immovable obstruction impedes the lie of their ball, their stance or swing.

I witnessed golfers dropping their balls so close to the situation they were getting relief from during the competition with total oblivion to the fact that they were allowed to move a bit further.
When a golfer is entitled to free relief from immovable obstruction or an abnormal ground conditions, they need to first identify the nearest point of relief.
The best way to do this is by using the club that they would use in that situation. So if the player’s ball lies on “ground under repair” in the rough, and they are left with 150 yards to the green, they need to use the club that they would hit in the situation.
Let us assume that the player would use an 8-iron. The player will need to identify the nearest point where the “ground under repair” would not interfere with their swing, stance or lie of their ball. This point is known as the nearest point of relief. The nearest point of relief must not be nearer the hole than where the ball was originally.
The player is then entitled to drop a ball within one club-length of the nearest point of relief. The player can use any club in their bag to determine the one club-length. They can use their driver for instance, as long as they have removed its cover. The ball, when dropped must first strike the ground within the one club-length so measured. If the ball rolls to within two club-lengths of the place where it first strikes the ground, it is okay.
In some instances, if a player knows what they are entitled to, they may be able to drop a ball on the fairway when taking relief from a situation in the rough.
I have heard many people arguing that if a ball is in the rough, it must not be dropped on the fairway. Such declarations can only be ascribed to “golf rules mwitu”. There is no reference in the Rules of Golf to fairways and roughs. So if the nearest point of relief is within a club-length from the fairway, a golfer should take full advantage.

A few golfers that participated in the Nairobi District Foursomes did not take full advantage of the one club-length. All the same, they all displayed the spirit of the game and great camaraderie while competing.

The next major event in the amateur golfers calendar is the Sigona Bowl also known as the “Boiro” by the Sigona Club members. I suspect that the winner will come from some of the top players from last weekend.