10/28/18 - Balboa 9

I almost got my first hole-in-one today, but it wouldn't have counted.  My tee shot on #8 hit the top of a tree and dropped about a foot from the foot golf hole.

So what's the rule if it had happened?  I'm pretty sure that the foot golf hole would play as an immovable obstruction (Rule 24-2).  Free relief within one club-length, no closer to the hole.

10/20/18 - St. Marks Executive

On a short par 3, I hit my gap wedge, and ended up with a major league embedded ball.  The ball was 3/4 below the surface of the green.  It was beyond repair.  I tried to repair it, but what I ended up with was level grass around where the ball mark was, but there was still a cavern underneath.  I couldn't find any rule to cover that.

But....

I placed the ball on top of the highly damaged spot and went to read the putt.  While I was reading the putt, the ball moved (due to gravity) a couple of inches.  In this situation, Decision 20-4/1 is pretty clear.  If the ball moves due to gravity, then the ball must be played from the new position.

So I'm pretty sure that I played within the rules.  As far as I can tell, if the ball didn't move, then I would have had to putt it while it was precariously balanced on top of the semi-repaired ball mark.

The embedded ball rule is changing in 2019.  Rather than just a closely mown area, you can get relief from a ball embedded in the rough starting in 2019.  Our club has played that as a local rule for the last couple of years (not in a hazard, though).