VINCENT25149
Bogey Member
https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10200472874120452
watch the video is this legal or not?
watch the video is this legal or not?
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Playing Surface
A surface, generally the ground, which is capable of supporting the player and from which a stance can reasonably be taken. A playing surface may exist above or below another playing surface. In cases where it is unclear whether a surface is a playing surface, the decision shall be made by the Director or an official.
I want more opinions on this. Can the tree be considered a playing surface? I think not but I have a discussion on another site I want to apply opinions here to.
A surface, generally the ground, which is capable of supporting the player and from which a stance can reasonably be taken. A playing surface may exist above or below another playing surface. In cases where it is unclear whether a surface is a playing surface, the decision shall be made by the Director or an official.
C. If the disc first comes to rest above or below the playing surface, its position is on the playing surface directly below or above the disc.
E. If a large solid obstacle prevents the player from taking a legal stance behind the marker disc, the player may instead mark the lie by placing a mini marker disc on the playing surface immediately behind that obstacle on the line of play.
Q. Rule 803.08 describes what to do if the playing surface below the disc is "inside a tree", but I'm not sure what that means. Does it refer to the area encompassed by the ground-level branches, or just the trunk?
A. It refers to the trunk, or any other large solid part where it would be physically impossible to place a marker disc. If there is room to mark your disc directly below, that is what you do. If not, you mark at the first available spot back along the line of play.
So Mr. Harris Legal or Not
I don't think you can argue that "a stance can reasonably be taken" in a tree.
I disagree with this because the player clearly could and did take a stance in this instance. I think the words "reasonably be taken" are the operating ones here. They imply that it is a judgment call. In the player's judgment, he could climb up in the tree, take a stance and make a throw...and then did so. Nothing illegal about it at all, IMO.
The bigger question in my mind is why is this an issue at all? Only reason I can think of to question the player's decision is if the 2-meter penalty was in play. If it was, maybe it's worth an argument because he's potentially sparing himself a penalty by climbing up there to play the disc. If the penalty wasn't in play, then what difference does it make? A throw from in the tree or a throw from on the ground behind the tree both put him in roughly the same position to make roughly the same shot he did.
I say legal, but the only call that matters here is the TD's. If the TD says it was cool, there's no point arguing it. The book specifically makes the TD the final say.
Not legal without express indication from the TD in advance that "places in trees where players could take a legal stance" can optionally be declared a playing surface.
The default definition for playing surfaces is taken to be the ground where people walk or places prepared where they are intended to walk. The definition indicates the TD may specify additional playing surfaces. Places in trees would not be considered default playing surfaces but subject to specific allowance by the TD.