With the new Local Rule changes in 2019 we have decided to adopt the stroke and distance Local Rule. Below is a copy of the simplified wording which you will also find on the Local Rules board outside the pro shop.
Stroke and Distance Local Rule
When a player's ball has not been found or is known or virtually certain to be out of bounds, the player may proceed as follows rather than proceeding under stroke and distance.
For two penalty strokes, the player may take relief by dropping the original ball or another ball in this relief area (see Rule 14.3):
Two Estimated Reference Points:
(a). Ball Reference Point: The point where the original ball is estimated to have:
· Come to rest on the course, or
· Last crossed the edge of the course boundary to go out of bounds.
(b). Fairway Reference Point: The point of fairway of the hole being played that is nearest to the ball reference point, but is not nearer the hole than the ball reference point.
For purposes of this Local Rule, "fairway" means any area of grass in the general area that is cut to fairway height or less.
We will also be uploading a video of the rule to our Tauranga Facebook page so head over and check it out. If you also want more information got to the R&A website to see all the new rule changes for 2019.