Under the Rules of Golf, an abnormal course condition is anything that is futher defined as either, a animal hole, ground under repair, immovable obstruction, or temporary water. During the spring, ground under repair and temporary water are the most common for a player to encounter.

Any part of the golf course that the committee determines to be ground under repair. Areas deemed as ground under repair will likely have white spray paint around it and any attached or growing object that is within the inside of the white circle is part of the ground under repair.

Ground Under Repair can also be defined by physical features or using stakes.

Defined as any unattached natural objects such as:

• Stones, leaves, loose grass, branches, and sticks
• Dead animals or animal waste
• Worms, insects, or similar animals that can removed easily, and the mounds or webs they build
• Clumps of compacted soil (including aeration plugs)

During the spring, it’s important to note that Dew, Frost, and Water are not loose impediments. Snow and Natural Ice however can be treated as loose impediments or temporary water with discretion being given to the player on how to proceed.

Preferred Lies are commonly known as winter rules, but this rule permits golfers to lift, clean, and place their ball if the course implements it. This is common when the course is still wet from the snow thawing or after a heavy rainstorm

Any temporary accumulation of water on the surface of the ground. It is not enough for the ground to be wet, muddy, or soft, instead this accumulation of water must remain present either before or after a stance is taken.

Before taking relief you need to know if the golf course has determined that the area is in fact ground under repair. It’s common when playing a casual round with friends to make these determinations amongst the group, but it’s up to the golf course to make this determination ahead of time and clearly mark it with paint, stakes, or both.

Aeration is a common practice in the spring to help the course’s get into shape. Aeration holes are not considered ground under repair, unless the golf courses implement the specific local rule that allows this.

Any clumps of compacted soil including aeration plugs however are loose impediments and can be removed by golfers.

You’re allowed to remove loose impediments anywhere on the golf course including the fairway, a bunker, or even on the putting green. Review the definition above of what a loose impediment is.

It’s important to be careful when moving a loose impediment however, because if the ball moves and you’re anywhere on the course other than the green or teeing area you will incur a penalty of one stroke.

If you end up in a large accumulation of water in the bunker you are entitled to relief from this abnormal course condition. The relief must be inside the bunker to not incur a penalty or you can take a one stroke penalty and take it out of the bunker on a straight line back from the pin and where the original ball was. If you can’t find complete relief from the water, you will have to find the point with maximum relief from the water.

If your ball is in an abnormal course condition rough (like ground under repair or temporary water) in the fairway or the rough, players are entitled to free relief. Find your nearest point of relief and you get one club length from here to create your relief area.

If the course determines that the grass is really wet or muddy, they’ll let players know that preferred lies are in effect. The course will also determine what areas of the course the rule applies to, and the size of the relief area given (i.e. a scorecard length from the original spot.

If preferred lies are put into place, depending on what the course institutes, players can mark their ball, lift it, clean it, and then place it back within the determined relief area.