Morris on the rules

Unplayable lie: your options and how to drop

A ball under a bush or against a tree root is not a disaster: the Rules give you a way out for one stroke. The hard part is knowing the three ways out and dropping the ball properly once you pick one.

Short answer: You alone can declare a ball unplayable, anywhere except in a penalty area. Add one penalty stroke and play again from where you hit last, or drop back on the line from the hole, or drop within two club-lengths of the ball, no nearer the hole. In a bunker, back-on-the-line and lateral drops stay in the bunker unless you take two penalty strokes.

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By Morris, by Badgie Golf · Updated 18 October 2026

The options at a glance

Rule 19.2 and 19.3. Back-on-the-line and lateral from a bunker have to be dropped in the bunker.

Option	Where you play from	Penalty
Stroke and distance	Where your previous stroke was made	1 stroke
Back on the line	Behind the ball, on the line from the hole through its spot; no limit on how far back	1 stroke
Lateral	Within 2 club-lengths of the ball, no nearer the hole	1 stroke
Back on the line, from a bunker	Outside the bunker	2 strokes

How to drop

1
Measure the relief area
For back on the line, it is one club-length from where the dropped ball first touches the ground; for the lateral option, two club-lengths from the ball. In both cases it cannot be nearer the hole and has to stay in the same area of the course.
2
Drop from knee height
Stand and let the ball fall straight down from knee height, without throwing, spinning or rolling it, and without touching your body or equipment first.
3
It must come to rest inside
If it lands in the area and stays there, relief is complete. If it comes to rest outside, drop again.
4
Second drop, then place
If the second drop also comes to rest outside, place the ball where that second drop first touched the ground.

For a ball that is lost rather than unplayable, see lost ball and provisional ball; for water, red and yellow stakes, see penalty areas. The rest of the situations are in golf rules explained.

Sources

The R&A — Rules of Golf, Rule 19: Unplayable Ball — 19.1 who decides, 19.2 the three options, 19.3 in a bunker. Read 18 October 2026.
The R&A — Rules of Golf, Rule 14: Procedures for Ball — 14.3 dropping in a relief area: knee height, two drops, placing. Read 18 October 2026.

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Questions about unplayable balls and drops

Who decides that my ball is unplayable?

Only you. Rule 19.1 lets you declare your ball unplayable anywhere on the course except in a penalty area, where Rule 17 applies instead. Nobody can force you to play a ball you consider unplayable, or take the relief away from you.

What are my options for an unplayable ball?

Outside a bunker you choose one of three, each at one penalty stroke: play again from where your previous stroke was made; drop on the line from the hole through the ball, as far back as you like; or drop within two club-lengths of where the ball lies, no nearer the hole. You do not need to find the ball to use the first one.

What if my ball is unplayable in a bunker?

You have the same three options at one penalty stroke, but the back-on-the-line and lateral drops have to stay in the bunker. For two penalty strokes in total you get one more option: back-on-the-line relief outside the bunker.

How do I drop a ball correctly?

Stand, hold the ball at knee height and let it fall straight down, without throwing it, spinning it or rolling it, and so that it does not touch your body or equipment before it hits the ground. You may drop it from inside or outside the relief area, and you can use the original ball or another.

What if the ball rolls out of the relief area?

It must land in the relief area and come to rest there. If it comes to rest outside, you drop again. If the second drop also comes to rest outside, you place the ball where the second drop first touched the ground.

What happens if I drop wrongly and play on?

A ball dropped the wrong way does not count as one of your two drops. If you play it from the relief area without re-dropping, the penalty is one extra stroke; if you play it from outside the relief area, or after placing it, it is the general penalty of two strokes.

The rules, when you need them

Send him your situation as it is, where the ball lies and what happened, and he tells you the rule and how to play on.

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