Our monthly tournament for March was at Riverwalk. It was raining when we teed off, so we (the board) had decided to adopt a local rule for lift, clean, and place. It stopped raining shortly after we started, so I don't believe anyone in our group used this local rule. I'm not sure about other foursomes.
On the first hole of the Mission 9, one player ended up near a hazard, and behind a low wooden fence. He asked if he could get relief, and we collectively decided that since the fence didn't impact his stance or his swing, that he was not entitled to relief. I was pretty sure that was the right decision, but I wanted to look it up.
The fence is considered an immovable obstruction. Rule 24-2 covers this scenario. On the green, an immovable obstruction on the line of play would entitle the player to relief. But if the ball is not on the putting green, then an immovable obstruction in your line of play does not qualify you for relief. You shouldn't have hit it over there. Sorry, Jeff, but I'm glad we got the rule right.
