A penalty area is an area of the course, such as a pond, river or creek, where a ball often cannot be played as it lies, and from which the Rules let you take relief outside the area for a one-stroke penalty (Rule 17). There are two types: yellow penalty areas, marked with yellow stakes or lines, and red penalty areas, marked in red. Only red penalty areas allow lateral relief, where you drop within two club-lengths to the side. The 2019 Rules revision replaced the old terms “water hazard” and “lateral water hazard” with these names.
Many golfers still say “water hazard” or just “hazard” on the course, but the current Rules of Golf only use the term penalty area. The meaning is the same.
What changed from water hazards
- Areas without water can now be included. A penalty area is any body of water on the course (whether or not it is marked, including seas, lakes, ponds, rivers, ditches and drainage channels, even when they contain no water) and any other area the Committee defines as a penalty area. Cliffs, dense woods and jungle can all be marked as penalty areas.
- Restrictions on playing from inside have gone. Before 2019, you were penalised for grounding your club or removing loose impediments such as leaves and twigs in a hazard. Now penalty areas are treated like the general area, and none of these carries a penalty (Rule 17.1b).
- Colour rules. If the Committee has not marked a penalty area as red or yellow, it is treated as red. Since 2019, the Committee may also mark every penalty area on the course as red.
Our article on water hazards explains the old rules. When you play today, follow the rules in this article.
Yellow stakes vs. red stakes
| Relief option (all one penalty stroke) | Yellow (yellow stakes or lines) | Red (red stakes or lines) |
|---|---|---|
| Stroke-and-distance relief (Rule 17.1d(1)): replay from where you played your previous stroke | Allowed | Allowed |
| Back-on-the-line relief (Rule 17.1d(2)): drop outside the penalty area on a line going back from the hole through the point where the ball last crossed the edge | Allowed | Allowed |
| Lateral relief (Rule 17.1d(3)): drop within two club-lengths of the point where the ball last crossed the edge, not nearer the hole | Not allowed | Allowed |
Yellow is used where going back and replaying is the natural option, such as a pond in front of a green you have to carry. Red is used where going back is difficult, such as a creek running along the side of a hole.
The reference point is not where the ball ended up
For back-on-the-line and lateral relief, the reference point is the point where the ball last crossed the edge of the penalty area. It is not where the ball is sitting under the water, or where it splashed. If your ball bounced short of a pond and rolled in, or clipped the edge and curved away, confirm this point with your playing partners before taking relief. If you cannot tell exactly, use your best estimate.
Dropping on the opposite side of a red penalty area is only allowed when a Local Rule (Model Local Rule B-2) permits it. The Rules themselves do not include opposite-side relief.
How to read stakes and lines
- When stakes are used, the edge of the penalty area is defined by the line between the outside points of the stakes at ground level, and the stakes themselves are inside the penalty area.
- When a line is painted on the ground, the line itself is inside the penalty area.
- If any part of the ball touches the edge, the ball is in the penalty area (Rule 17.1a).
- Penalty area stakes may be removed if they come out easily, because they are movable obstructions. Put them back after you play. White stakes (out of bounds) must not be removed.
When you cannot find your ball
You can take penalty area relief when it is known or virtually certain that your ball is in the penalty area (Rule 17.1c). In that case you can take relief even if the ball is not found.
If there is deep rough or trees in front of a pond and you cannot tell whether the ball went into the water or stopped short, penalty area relief is not available. Search for three minutes, and if the ball is not found it is lost, which means stroke-and-distance relief (replaying from where you played your previous stroke). Assuming “it’s probably in the water” and dropping beside the pond is a common habit, but it is not allowed under the Rules.
A provisional ball may be played when your ball might be lost outside a penalty area or out of bounds. If the only place your ball could be is in a penalty area, you cannot play a provisional ball unless a Local Rule allows it. See our article on out of bounds and provisional balls for details.
Playing the ball from inside the penalty area
You can also play a ball in a penalty area as it lies, without penalty. Some players choose to when the water is shallow or the bottom of a ditch is dry. Since 2019, touching the ground or the water with your club at address is no longer penalised.
- If a no play zone has been defined within the penalty area, you cannot play from it and must take relief (Rule 17.1e).
- You cannot declare a ball unplayable in a penalty area (Rule 17.3). If you cannot play it, use the relief options in this article. See also our article on unplayable balls.
- Free relief from cart paths, ground under repair and similar conditions is also not available inside a penalty area.
Drop zones and special tees
Some courses put a forward tee in front of a pond on a forced-carry hole and tell players who find the water to play their next shot from there. That is the course’s own arrangement and is not part of the Rules. The way to do the same thing within the Rules is a drop zone (Model Local Rule E-1), which is what you will usually see at courses that use one. If there is neither a drop zone nor a special tee, choose from the three relief options above. The dropping procedure is explained in our guide on how to drop a golf ball.
Penalty areas at Southeast Asian golf courses
Golf courses in Indonesia, Thailand and Malaysia often have plenty of ponds, creeks and drainage channels crossing the holes. In the rainy season the channels fill up, and in the dry season they may dry out, but a drainage channel is still a penalty area even with no water in it. Some courses also mark areas of jungle or dense woods with red stakes as penalty areas.
- If you cannot see the colour of the stakes, ask your caddie: “Is this red or yellow?”
- To agree on where the ball last crossed the edge, ask “Where did it cross the line?”
- The banks of ponds can be slippery after rain. Do not get too close to the water’s edge trying to retrieve a ball.