I was in casual water, and my stance would have been on the cart path, so I was entitled to relief. The nearest point of relief was going to be an awkward stance. Can I get back-on-the-line relief for either of those?
No. Both of those scenarios are Abnormal Course Conditions (Rule #16.1). It's free relief, but it has to be within one club length of the nearest point of complete relief that is not closer to the hole. It also has to be in the same area as the balls original position. In other words, if it's in a bunker, then the nearest point of relief must be in a bunker. If it's on the green, then the nearest point of relief is on the green. You cannot take abnormal course conditions relief in a penalty area.
Note that both the fairway and the rough are the same area of the course - the general area. So you can get out of the rough into the fairway in this scenario. You cannot get onto the green, though.
Also note that the cart path and the casual water are separate. You've probably seen it on TV where a player takes relief from the cart path, and then takes relief from a sprinkler. You can also use the point that is the nearest point of relief from both conditions. You shouldn't hesitate to use the rules to your advantage when you can.
This seems like a good time to discuss complete relief. The nearest point of complete relief has to be completely free of interference. Michael Kim got popped for this late in the season because after he dropped, his ball was on the line of the penalty area.
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