Winter Rules

photo credit: SubZeroConsciousness   According to the USGA. Rules of Golf, there is no such thing as winter rules.  What are winter rules?  Winter rules are when conditions severely affect play in which case, you can “lift, clean and place” your golf ball.  You may pick up your ball, clean it and replace it on the spot where it came to rest, without incurring a penalty. 

A tournament committee or course manager can enact winter rules if the conditions require.  Most of the time in extremely wet conditions, where there are very wet and low lying areas on the course, winter rules are applied.  Winter rules are more common in the eastern section of the US. because of the dramatic changes in weather conditions that frequently occur.