Red Stakes
Red stakes mark a penalty area, usually a lateral water hazard, from which you can take relief for a penalty stroke.
The red stakes or red lines on the ground show you the boundary of a red penalty area. This zone used to be called a "lateral water hazard"; since the 2019 rule reform it is simply called a red penalty area. Typical are ponds, streams or ditches that run parallel to the line of play and make dropping back behind the hazard impossible. The red marking gives you more options than the yellow one. Your ball only counts as in the penalty area when it touches the line or lies beyond it — on the line itself you are still outside.
In practice you have three options, all costing one Penalty Stroke. An example: Your ball bounces off the Fairway into a lateral pond marked in red. Option one is going back to the spot of the last stroke. Option two is the drop on the imaginary line behind the entry point, as far back as you like. Option three, only allowed with red: the drop within two club lengths of the point where the ball last crossed the boundary, no nearer the hole. Most golfers choose the third option because it costs the least distance.
A typical mistake is dropping at the wrong reference point. What matters is not where the ball lies but where it last crossed the red line. Anyone measuring from the final position often drops from the wrong spot and risks further penalty strokes. Also popular: confusing them with the yellow stakes, where the two-club-length option is missing. If in doubt, a look at the Local Rules or a word with your playing partners helps before you drop.
FAQ
What options do I have when my ball lies in a red-marked penalty area?
You have three options, all for one penalty stroke: back to the spot of the last stroke, drop on the line behind the entry point as far back as you like, or drop within two club lengths of the entry point, no nearer the hole. The third option exists only with red and is the most popular because it costs the least distance.
What is the difference between red and yellow stakes?
With the yellow stakes the option of dropping laterally within two club lengths of the entry point is missing. There you are left with going back to the last stroke and the drop on the line behind it. Red therefore gives you more flexibility — typical for hazards that run parallel to the line of play.
Where exactly may I drop with a red penalty area?
What matters is the point where your ball last crossed the red line — not the final position of the ball. From this reference point you measure two club lengths, no nearer the hole. Anyone measuring from the wrong point risks an incorrect drop and further penalty strokes.