‘But Then, What Is A Divot?’ - Jon Rahm Weighs In On The Most Controversial Rule In Golf

There are times when the Rules of Golf can benefit or punish your game but, as of writing, there is no rule regarding relief from fairway divots.

Obviously, in terms of etiquette, a divot should always be filled in but, at times, there are moments when you can't physically do so. What's more, if your ball ends up in a divot, you can't take relief and must play the ball as it lies.

This is one of the most argued points in golf, as some believe there should be free relief if you find a fairway divot, whereas some feel its tough luck if you do find one from a tee shot.

It's a hot topic and, featuring on the Rick Shiels YouTube channel, two-time Major winner Jon Rahm was asked about his thoughts on the matter, explaining that it's rare professionals have to play shots from fairway divots when in competition play.

Despite the accuracy of players hitting into similar areas of the fairway every round, the Spaniard revealed that "if it happens more than once a year (you're unlucky)."

However, despite it not being a frequent event, Rahm claimed that he does "go back and forth" on the matter of the possibility of free relief, explaining both sides of the argument.

"I think you should, because it's the definition of ground under repair. But then, what is a divot? Can you call any possible imperfection a divot when it's on the fairway, and get relief?

"It's a tricky one, especially around the greens. I feel a lot of people take advantage of that. The one I do feel strongly on, though, is a pitchmark. You see what happened with Paul Casey at The Players Championship a few years ago. That's a little bit borderline. If you hit the fairway you shouldn't be penalized."

You can check out the full conversation at the 38-minute mark in the video below:

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The moment involving Casey came at the 2022 Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass. In contention heading down the stretch, the Englishman pounded his drive into the centre of the fairway but, as the ball finished, it came to rest in a pitchmark from a player's previous drive.

Dubbed as one of the 'worst breaks' in golf, Casey was unable to take a relief as the pitchmark didn't happen from his drive. If the ball had embedded itself on landing he would have been granted free relief but, consequently, his only option was to knock one down the fairway, whereas he would have no doubt gone for the green if his ball wasn't embedded.

Back in 2021, Golf Monthly posed the question on its website forum asking whether free relief should be taken from fairway divots. In terms of responses, approximately 75% of the comments were along the lines of ‘no relief and just get on with it’.