While some courses, such as links or hilltop layouts, may not play radically differently from season to season, others will play very differently from winter to summer, especially some of our parkland courses laid out on clay, where drainage can be an issue in the off-season. With that in mind, I’ve picked out eight Rules that it will be handy to know when conditions turn a little wetter or softer…
Preferred lies
Although golfers use the terms ‘preferred lies’ and ‘winter rules’ interchangeably, Model Local Rule E-3 (preferred lies) makes no mention of any specific season and can actually be implemented at any time of year for the fair playing of the game or to protect the fairways, so always check whether or not preferred lies are in force via your club’s local rules. That said, they will still be far more common in winter.
