Can you move things that are in the way of your shot in golf?
B · Beginner · Starting and playing a hole · 6 of 13Two principles run through the Rules: play the course as it is found and play the ball as it lies. A player must not improve the lie, the stance, the area of the swing or the line of play by moving, bending or breaking anything growing or fixed. The penalty is two strokes, or the hole in match play.
How it works
What is protected: the lie of the ball, the area of the intended stance, the area of the intended swing, the line of play and the area where a ball will be dropped.
Not allowed, if it improves any of those:
- Moving, bending or breaking a growing or attached natural object, an immovable obstruction or a boundary object.
- Moving a loose object into position, for example to build a stance.
- Altering the ground: replacing divots, pressing down turf, making or flattening holes.
- Removing or pressing down sand or loose soil.
- Removing dew, frost or water.
Allowed, even if it improves them:
- Resting the club lightly on the ground right in front of or behind the ball, though not pressing it down, and not at all in a bunker.
- Placing the feet firmly, including a reasonable amount of digging in.
- Taking a stance fairly. The player is not entitled to a normal stance or swing and must use the least intrusive way of getting to the ball.
- Searching fairly for the ball.
- Removing loose impediments and movable obstructions.
- Whatever happens in the stroke itself, or in the backswing for a stroke that is then made.
Putting things right:
- A player who bends a branch or moves a boundary stake can avoid the penalty by putting it back as it was before the stroke. That does not work for altered ground.
- If someone else, or an animal, makes the lie or stance worse after the ball has stopped, the player may restore it. If the weather or the player did it, they may not.
Tricky cases
Can a player break off a branch that blocks the backswing?
No. It may be broken only by the swing itself, in a stroke that is then made.
Can a player press down the grass behind the ball?
No. The club may be grounded lightly, with its weight resting on the grass, but pressing down is not allowed.
Another player's bunker shot sprayed sand over the ball. Can it be cleaned off?
Yes. When another person makes the conditions worse, the player may restore them, and may lift and clean the ball if sand landed on it.
Why the rule exists
Golf is played over ground nobody has prepared for that particular shot. Accepting what is found is the test. Without the rule, every bad lie would be gardened into a good one.
Where it differs
| Where | What changes | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Rules of Golf | As above | G 1.1; G 8.1; G 9.1 |
| Teeing area | The ground may be altered and grass broken before the tee shot | G 6.2b; G 8.1b |
| Putting green | Sand and loose soil may be removed and damage repaired | G 13.1c |
From the rule book
The R&A and USGA Rules of Golf, Rules 1.1, 8.1 and 9.1. Effective January 2023. Checked 14 October 2026. Official document: Rules of Golf (PDF).