Keeping the Point Between You and the Hole

Q. What Does "Keeping the Point Between You and the Hole" Mean?

A. When a golfer dunks his ball into a water hazard (as differentiated from a lateral water hazard), one of his options is to drop behind the water hazard.

The rules, specifically Rule 26-1b, describes the procedure for the drop:

"Drop a ball behind the water hazard, keeping the point at which the original ball last crossed the margin of the water hazard directly between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped, with no limit to how far behind the water hazard the ball may be dropped."

Many golfers fail to understand exactly what this means, specifically "keeping the point at which the original ball last crossed the margin of the water hazard directly between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped."

What does that mean - keeping the point between you and hole? What direction are you supposed to be going? On what line, exactly, are you allowed to drop?

It's really very easy to understand once it's visualized correctly.

But before we visualize that line, let's make clear what this rule does not mean.

"Keeping the point at which the original ball last crossed the margin of the water hazard directly between the hole and the spot on which the ball is dropped" has nothing to do with the direction your ball was traveling when it entered the hazard.

Let's repeat: the line of flight of your original ball does not matter. You might have sliced or hooked it, pushed or pulled it, or hit it dead straight. It does not matter.

OK, with that out of the way, here's how to visualize the line on which you're allowed to drop behind a water hazard.

Take a look at the flagstick. Now look at the point at which your ball crossed the margin of the hazard. Now imagine drawing a line extending straight back from the flagstick to that point. Now imagine that line continuing to travel straight back, from the flagstick to the point where your ball crossed the margin, and continuing straight back hundreds of yards.

That is the line on which you must drop.