Rules question · Rule 16.4 · Hard
Lifted my ball to check for an animal hole: is there a penalty?
You suspect your ball in the rough lies in an animal hole, but you cannot tell. You mark it, lift it and find there is no animal hole. What is the ruling?
Answer
No penalty, you replace it
If you reasonably believe your ball lies in a condition where free relief is allowed, you may lift it to check. You must mark it first and must not clean it. If relief is not allowed, you replace it without penalty. If you lifted it without marking or cleaned it, that costs one penalty stroke.