Before you hit from a bunker you may dig in your feet, rest your clubs on the sand, lean on a club and smooth sand to care for the course. You may not test the sand, or touch it with your club right in front of or right behind the ball, in a practice swing or in your backswing. The price is the general penalty, which is two strokes in stroke play and loss of the hole in match play. If the ball is unplayable in the sand, one stroke gets you out three ways, and two strokes lets you go back on the line outside the bunker.
The ChartWhat you can and can't do in a bunker before the stroke
| Action | Allowed? | Notes | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Remove loose impediments and movable obstructions | Yes | Reasonable touching or moving of sand while doing it is fine. | 12.2a |
| Dig in your feet to take a stance | Yes | For a practice swing or for the stroke. | 12.2b(2) |
| Set clubs or other objects down on the sand | Yes | Setting them down or throwing them in are both covered. | 12.2b(2) |
| Lean on a club | Yes | To rest, stay balanced or prevent a fall. | 12.2b(2) |
| Smooth the bunker to care for the course | Yes | But if it improves the conditions affecting your stroke, you get the general penalty (Rule 8.1a). | 12.2b(2) |
| Measure, mark, lift, replace, or take other actions under a Rule | Yes | Touching the sand while doing it is not a breach. | 12.2b(2) |
| Strike the sand in frustration or anger | Yes | The Rule lists it as touching that does not result in penalty. | 12.2b(2) |
| Test the sand with a hand, club, rake or other object | No | Deliberately touching the sand to learn something for the next stroke. General penalty. | 12.2b(1) |
| Touch the sand with a club right in front of the ball | No | Exceptions: fairly searching for the ball (Rule 7.1a) and removing a loose impediment or movable obstruction (Rule 12.2a). | 12.2b(1) |
| Touch the sand with a club right behind the ball | No | Same two exceptions. General penalty. | 12.2b(1) |
| Touch the sand with a club in a practice swing | No | You can make the swing. The club just can't touch the sand. | 12.2b(1) |
| Touch the sand with a club in the backswing | No | General penalty. | 12.2b(1) |
Source: The R&A, Rules of Golf, Rule 12 (Bunkers), 12.2a and 12.2b. General penalty: The R&A, Rules of Golf, Definitions.
Rule 12.2 applies during a round and while play is stopped under Rule 5.7a. Rule 12.2b(1) also has modified versions for players who are blind (Rule 25.2f) and players who use an assistive mobility device (Rule 25.4l).
After the ball is out
Once your ball has been played out and is outside the bunker, or you have taken or intend to take relief outside the bunker, you may touch the sand without penalty and smooth it to care for the course (Rule 12.2b(3)). That holds even if the sand is on your line of play for the next stroke. The restrictions come back if the ball returns to the bunker, if you take relief by dropping in the bunker, or if you decide not to take relief outside it.
DefinitionsWhat counts as being in the bunker
The restrictions above apply to a ball in a bunker, so it matters whether yours is. The test is sand: a ball is in the bunker when any part of it touches sand inside the edge of the bunker (Rule 12.1).
| My ball is... | In the bunker? | Where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| Touching sand inside the edge | Yes | Rule 12.1: any part of the ball touches sand on the ground inside the edge. |
| Inside the edge, on ground where sand normally would be | Yes | Rule 12.1, for example where sand was blown or washed away by wind or water. |
| In or on a loose impediment, movable obstruction, abnormal course condition or integral object that touches the bunker sand | Yes | Rule 12.1. Also yes if the object sits on ground where sand normally would be. |
| On soil or grass inside the edge, touching no sand | No | Rule 12.1: the same goes for other growing or attached natural objects inside the edge. |
| On the lip, wall or face at the edge | No | Definition of bunker: a lip, wall or face made of soil, grass, stacked turf or artificial materials is not part of the bunker. |
| On sand that has spilled over or lies outside the edge of the prepared area | No | Definition of bunker. |
| On a natural sand area such as a desert or waste area | No, unless the Committee has defined it as a bunker | Definition of bunker. |
| In a bunker the Committee has defined in full as ground under repair | No, it is treated as the general area | Definition of bunker: applies while the bunker is being repaired. |
| Partly in the bunker and partly in another area | See Rule 2.2c | Rule 12.1 sends you to Rule 2.2c. |
Source: The R&A, Rules of Golf, Rule 12.1 and Definitions (Bunker).
A bunker is a specially prepared area of sand, often a hollow from which turf or soil was removed. In the Rules, "sand" also covers sand-like bunker material such as crushed shells, and any soil mixed in with the sand.
StuckUnplayable in a bunker: four ways out and what each costs
Only you can decide your ball is unplayable (Rule 19.1). In a bunker you have four options, and the last one is the 2-stroke escape.
| Your option | Penalty strokes | Where you play from | Rule |
|---|---|---|---|
| Stroke and distance | 1 | Play the original ball or another ball from where you made your previous stroke. You can do this even if the original ball has not been found. | 19.3a, 19.2a |
| Back on the line, in the bunker | 1 | Drop behind the spot of the ball, keeping that spot between the hole and your drop spot, with no limit on how far back. The ball must be dropped in the bunker and come to rest there. The relief area is one club-length from where it first touches the ground, no nearer the hole. | 19.3a, 19.2b |
| Lateral relief, in the bunker | 1 | Drop within two club-lengths of the spot of the ball, no nearer the hole. The ball must be dropped in the bunker and come to rest there. | 19.3a, 19.2c |
| Back on the line, outside the bunker (the 2-stroke escape) | 2 in total | Drop on the same kind of line, behind the spot of the ball and outside the bunker. The relief area is one club-length from where the ball first touches the ground, no nearer the hole. | 19.3b, 19.2b |
Source: The R&A, Rules of Golf, Rule 19 (Unplayable Ball), 19.1 to 19.3.
For the two back-on-the-line options and the lateral option you have to know the spot of the original ball. Stroke and distance is the only one that works when the ball is lost in the sand. A ball played from a wrong place in breach of Rule 19.3 costs the general penalty under Rule 14.7a.
A club-length is the longest club you carry
It means the length of the longest of your clubs other than the putter, measured from the toe to the butt end of the grip. Anything attached to the end of the grip does not count.
Source: The R&A, Rules of Golf, Definitions (Club-Length).
When something else is in the way
If the problem is an abnormal course condition in the bunker, such as an animal hole, ground under repair, an immovable obstruction or temporary water, you do not have to call the ball unplayable. Rule 16.1c gives you free relief inside the bunker, using the nearest point of complete relief in the bunker, or back-on-the-line relief outside the bunker for one penalty stroke. Rule 12.3 also points to Rule 16.2 for a dangerous animal condition.
Source: The R&A, Rules of Golf, Rule 16.1c and Rule 12.3.
For the same options laid out beside penalty areas, out of bounds and lost balls, see our golf relief cheat sheet.
Using itHow to use this page in a round
Before you take your stance, look at where the ball is. If it is touching sand inside the edge, treat it as a bunker shot and keep the club off the sand until you swing.
Walk into the bunker with the club held clear of the sand. Digging your feet in is fine, and so is resting the club on the sand somewhere away from the ball, or leaning on it. In front of and behind the ball, the clubhead can touch the sand only in the cases the Rule allows, like searching for the ball.
If the lie is hopeless, decide which of the four options you want before you lift the ball. Look at what the next shot out of the sand would be from each place, and weigh that against the one stroke or two it costs.
After you play out, smooth the sand. Rule 12.2b(3) lets you do that without penalty once the ball is outside.
If you spend a lot of rounds in the sand, the wedge in your hand is part of the picture. Our wedge bounce chart and the 56 vs 60 degree wedge guide cover the club side.
Watch forCommon mistakes
Touching sand on the backswing. Rule 12.2b(1) bans club-to-sand contact in the backswing as well as right behind or in front of the ball.
A practice swing that brushes the sand. The swing is allowed. The contact is not.
Testing the sand. Pushing a hand or a club into the sand to feel how firm it is counts as testing when you do it deliberately to learn something for the next stroke.
Smoothing in a way that helps your shot. Caring for the course is allowed. If what you smooth improves the conditions affecting your stroke, you get the general penalty under Rule 8.1a.
Calling a ball on the lip "in the bunker". A ball on the lip, wall or face, or on grass or soil inside the edge with no sand touching it, is not in the bunker, so the sand restrictions and the bunker relief options do not apply to it.
Dropping outside the bunker for a lateral drop. Lateral relief for an unplayable ball in a bunker has to be taken in the bunker. The only way to drop outside is back on the line, for two penalty strokes in total.
FAQQuick answers
Can I ground my club in a bunker?
The Rule does not use that word. What Rule 12.2b(1) bans, before a stroke at a ball in a bunker, is touching the sand with your club right in front of or right behind the ball, in a practice swing, or in the backswing. Resting a club on the sand elsewhere is allowed under Rule 12.2b(2).
What is the penalty for breaking the bunker rules?
The general penalty under Rule 12.2. That is two penalty strokes in stroke play and loss of the hole in match play.
Can I rake the bunker before I hit?
Smoothing the bunker to care for the course is not a penalty under Rule 12.2b(2). If it improves the conditions affecting your stroke, you get the general penalty under Rule 8.1a. After the ball is out of the bunker, you may smooth the sand freely (Rule 12.2b(3)).
Can I take a practice swing in a bunker?
Yes, as long as the club does not touch the sand. A practice swing that touches the sand is a breach of Rule 12.2b(1).
My ball is unplayable in a bunker. What are my options?
Four. For one penalty stroke: stroke and distance, back on the line in the bunker, or lateral relief in the bunker. For two penalty strokes in total: back on the line outside the bunker. All four come from Rule 19.3.
Is a ball on the lip of a bunker in the bunker?
No. The definition of bunker says a lip, wall or face made of soil, grass, stacked turf or artificial materials is not part of the bunker. A ball is in the bunker when any part of it touches sand inside the edge (Rule 12.1).