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The unofficial "Rake and replace" rule in the foot print bunker

Off season rounds I do. Not many bunkers on my course so not a huge issue. I have played for small amounts of money with a group that does so I would.
 
My Senior League has a "rake and replace" rule in the bunkers, and I agree with it. Is it abiding by the rules? No. But most of the players in our league have a hard enough time getting out of a good bunker lie, forget a footprint.

I try and follow the rules, and will play it as it lies in a bunker, but even though an errant shot gets you into a trap, why should a golfer be further penalized by some buffoon who doesn't rake, and leaves a 2-3" depression? I guess because that's golf? OK
 
Absolutely I think you should be able to rake and replace. Being in a footprint in a bunker is not part of “the spirit of the game.” Being in a foot print in a waste area is a completely different story.
 
I play it as I found it but the laziness some golfers really ticks me off.

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Foot prints is rake and place. Why should I be further penalized by the ignorance of others?
 
The only time I do it is if my group is playing the ball up. To be honest it really doesn’t matter to me that much about my lie in a bunker. A deep footprint I just treat it as a fried egg and close the face and blast it.


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The bunkers where I play are so bad! Lately with the rain and/or the watering cycle they are filled with water. It’s like playing in mud. They barely have sand and the lies are terrible. Still play it as it lies!
 
I've played it as it lies, but i'm going to ask my guys if they want to rake and replace.

I play at a course that has the rakes on the carts. People must forget or not know their ball ended up there or whatever. There are a lot of bunkers left not raked.
Additionally the bunkers are mostly firm and wettish, so when you throw in the foot print lie its dang near impossible to get it on the green.
 
... Divots are an excepted part of the game and so are ball marks on the green. You are supposed to pair those ball marks but if you don't, I can address that ignorance and fix it before putting. Why should a bunker be different? I have hit plenty of bunker shots from poor lies. Badly raked, deep furrows from the maintenance crew, hard pan, mud or soft sand creating a deep fried egg or a buried lie. All of these are the results of hitting into a hazard. Some yahoo that doesn't rake his footprints where he tried to hit out and failed should be raked and replaced. Pro's and tournament golfers NEVER deal with this and you don't run into those conditions anywhere but a muni or resort course because a drunk moron or just selfish player ignored standard procedure, so why should you be penalized because an idiot can't take the time to rake after their shot?

... As an example I hit a really good shot to a front pin just over a deep bunker. But a gust of wind caught the ball and I hit the top of the mound and it then rolled down into the bunker. It was sitting just below the lip in an 12" deep footprint where some moron hit his shot then climbed out at the highest point destroying the face of the bunker. My shot would have rolled to the bottom for an easy up and down had he raked the trap. I raked and replaced just under the lip and had to hit away from the hole. 12" below the surface and at the back of a deep heel print, I could not have gotten the ball out of the bunker with such a high lip.
 
I think my answer is clear as mud. For me it is completely situational.

If I am playing a casual round and myself or someone i am playing with finds them self in an odd situation I would offer they rake and replace or I may ask if they mind if I rake and replace. After all I paid my hard earned money to play and am just trying to have a good time. I will also add I rarely keep score.

If in a competitive situation than without a doubt I hit it out of there.
 
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