It usually takes the green a couple weeks to heal following aerification. During those couple weeks - and especially in the several days immediately following aerification - the aeration holes are quite a nuisance. They can certainly affect a putt, especially if your ball happens to come to rest right on top of one.
But does that mean a golfer whose ball is affected by aeration holes is entitled to free relief?
The answer is a qualified no, with an exception possibly provided through a local rule.
That answer that can only be determined in a roundabout way, unless you know specifically where to look. Start with Rule 25-1, where we learn that you can get free relief from abnormal ground conditions on the putting green.
But are aeration holes considered an abnormal ground condition? The definition of abnormal ground conditions is this: "An 'abnormal ground condition' is any casual water, ground under repair or hole, cast or runway on the course made by a burrowing animal, a reptile or a bird."
Aeration holes are holes, of course, but they are not made by burrowing animals. Are they ground under repair? If they are, then aeration holes fall under the definition of abnormal ground conditions.
So now we turn to the definition of ground under repair. The pertinent part of that definition is this: "Ground under repair is any part of the course so marked by order of the Committee or so declared by its authorized representative. It includes material piled for removal and a hole made by a greenkeeper, even if not so marked."
Hmmm, "hole made by a greenkeeper" seems to describe an aeration hole. Or does it?
Back to Rule 25-1, or more specifically, Decision 25/15. This decision gets straight to the point:
"Q. Is an aeration hole a hole made by a greenkeeper within the meaning of that term in the Definition of 'Ground Under Repair'?
A. No."
No. OK, so if the USGA and R&A say in Decision 25/15 that aeration holes do not qualify as "hole made by a greenkeeper," that means aeration holes are not ground under repair.
And if they aren't ground under repair, that means they aren't an abnormal ground condition. And if they aren't an abnormal ground condition, then golfers do not get relief from them under Rule 25-1.
So, no relief from aeration holes unless ... unless the Committee in charge of your course or competition has adopted Specimen Local Rule 3c that appears in Part B of Appendix I to the Rules of Golf.
Because such a local rule would be of limited duration, it would not be printed on the scorecard. If it is in effect, it should be posted on a notice board for all to see before beginning their round.
Specimen Local Rule 3c says this:
"• c. Aeration Holes
When a course has been aerated, a Local Rule permitting relief, without penalty, from an aeration hole may be warranted. The following Local Rule is recommended:
'Through the green, a ball that comes to rest in or on an aeration hole may be lifted without penalty, cleaned and dropped, as near as possible to the spot where it lay but not nearer the hole. The ball when dropped must first strike a part of the course through the green.
On the putting green, a ball that comes to rest in or on an aeration hole may be placed at the nearest spot not nearer the hole that avoids the situation.
PENALTY FOR BREACH OF LOCAL RULE: Match play — Loss of hole; Stroke play — Two strokes.' "
So, how do we sum this up? The process of reaching our conclusion may have been convoluted, but the answer to our original question - do you get relief from aeration holes on the putting green - is pretty straightforward.
No, unless the local rule cited above is in effect.
