Rules on the course
Temporary Water on the Green: Place or Drop?
For qualifying temporary-water interference with a ball on the putting green, the relief procedure uses placement on a point. It is not the same one-club-length dropping exercise used for a ball in the general area.
Competitive Play · Updated October 22, 2026
Follow the worked example
Ball on green: place at R, not anywhere in a circle
Water radius is 35 plan units; its centre is 120 from H. The original ball is 215 from H. The tangent angle determines R on that same-distance arc. The marked R gives placement relief. F is dry and no nearer the hole, but farther from B; it cannot replace the nearest point. There is no one-club-length choice region.
- H
- Hole.
- W
- Temporary-water puddle across the intended line.
- B
- Ball on its putting green.
- R
- Place the original or another ball on the nearest complete-relief point. Foot positions for the fictional stroke lie left of R and below the puddle; swing is also clear.
- F
- A farther dry candidate: 130 plan units from B versus about 63.4 for R. A better-looking lie is not permission to choose F.
Ball on fringe: a wet line alone does not qualify
The same ball position is now beyond the green's straight lower edge. Ball, stance and swing are dry. Ordinary Rule 16.1 does not give relief merely because the puddle crosses this off-green line. If actual physical interference exists, assess the separate general-area dropping procedure.
- H
- Hole on the green.
- B
- Ball in fringe/general area, below the green edge.
No complete-relief point: maximum available relief
Separate hypothetical: all eligible green/general-area positions still have water interference. Checking the reasonable stroke finds the best available point M: 5mm interference there versus 25mm at B, with no better eligible position. M is no nearer H. Place at the maximum-available-relief point rather than inventing a dry dropping area.
- H
- Hole.
- B
- Original 25mm water-interference case.
- M
- Best available eligible point in this explicitly stipulated complete survey; water interference remains.
Original fictional putting examples. The first plan uses a circular puddle and straight putt to H. R is the nearest no-nearer line-clear point on the original distance arc; the symmetric left candidate ties. At R the declared right-handed stance and local swing envelope are dry. Actual complete relief must be established for the player's reasonable stroke.
The short version
- A ball on the putting green can have qualifying line-of-play interference from an abnormal course condition.
- The nearest point of complete relief may be on the green or in the general area.
- If no such point exists, Rule16.1d provides for maximum available relief.
Check the condition, then the ball's area
The fictional sketch shows Ava's ball on her putting green and a puddle across her intended line. Ben's ball is outside the green beside the same wet area. They should not begin by copying each other's relief procedure.
Temporary water has a definition. Damp-looking turf or water made visible only by pressing excessively with the feet does not establish the condition by appearance alone. Establish the facts before deciding where to put a ball.
Point, not a freely chosen circle
For the on-green case, Rule 16.1d calls for placement on the nearest point of complete relief, which can be on the green or in the general area. It also addresses maximum available relief where complete relief is unavailable.
Our original plans state the putt direction and fictional water geometry, compare the same puddle with a ball off the green, and show a separate maximum-available-relief case. A more attractive but farther dry spot does not become the nearest point because it offers a straighter putt.
Why the line can matter here
For a ball on the putting green, abnormal-course-condition interference can include the line of play. That is a specific distinction from ordinary line-only interference when the ball is off the green. It does not mean every object along a putt produces the same entitlement.
If the ball is off the green and a sprinkler is the problem, check the separately adopted sprinkler Local Rule rather than importing the on-green water procedure.
Finish with the right procedure
Mark and record the original location as appropriate, establish the relief point and use the placement procedure the rule specifies. If there is no complete-relief point, discuss the maximum-available-relief situation with the referee rather than improvising a dry drop somewhere farther away.
For a ball on someone else's putting surface, read wrong-green relief; its mandatory-relief and dropping requirements answer a different question.
Your next move
Check the governing rule
Confirm the actual condition, adopted Local Rule and procedure before moving the ball.
Check the governing rule(Official source), opens in a new tabKeep reading
Sources and review
- What it covers
- 2023 Rules of Golf and current published clarifications/Model Local Rules checked October22,2026 for this specific scenario.
- Checked
Primary sources
What this page cannot tell you
- Original fictional diagrams; no actual course adoption or measured relief location is claimed. No named rules-qualified reviewer has reviewed this page.