If a player attempts to hit a ball over a water hazard and is unable to determine from the hitting ground if the ball has cleared the hazard, the player may play a provisional ball either by:
1. Playing the provisional ball from the point where it was last played, or dropping within 2 club lengths (no closer to the hole) of where it crossed the hazard line, or playing it from any point along the line determined by the flag and the point of entry into the hazardand replaying the shot, or
2. Re-teeing a ball if the original ball was played from the teeing ground
If the player finds the original ball, the player can play it as it lies without penalty. If the player cannot find the original ball after a reasonable search period, or chooses not to play it from within the hazard, the player will put the provisional ball into play with a one stroke penalty added to the score for that hole.
This rule will apply to the following holes on River Landing courses:
River Course
#4, 8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 18
Landing Course
#3, 6, 8, 12
ADDITIONAL RLMGA LOCAL RULES:
1 – The option to play a ball that is lost or went out of bounds as a lateral hazard instead of walking back to the point last played is no longer active. Instead, the RLMGA has adopted the USGA LOCAL RULE. This rule allows, for 2 penalty strokes, the player to estimate the spot where the ball is LOST or went OUT OF BOUNDS and then find the nearest fairway edge to that spot; equidistant to or farther from the hole. You can then drop a ball in the fairway within 2 club lengths of that fairway edge point, or anywhere (no closer to hole) between there and the estimated spot where the ball is lost or went out of bounds. The option to play a provisional ball is still available, as is the official USGA rule of replaying the shot with a 2 stroke penalty.