Lifting a ball to identify

Question: Can a player lift her ball anywhere on the course to identify it?

Answer: There is a one-stroke penalty for moving a ball at rest without announcing and marking it, no matter where on the hole it is. Rule 18-2b states: "If the player, [her] partner or either of their caddies lifts or moves [the ball], touches it purposely (except with a club in the act of addressing it) or causes it to move except as permissed by a Rule; or equipment of the player or [her] partner causes the ball to move, the player incurs a penalty of one stroke." That goes for the fairway, the rough and the putting green. Telling your playing partners, "Let me just check to see if this one is mine," won't let you dodge a penalty. Stick a tee in the ground next to the ball, life the ball and identify it as yours, then place it back in its original position.

Additional clubs allowed in bunker?

Question:
Is placing or dropping my clubs in a bunker prior to making my stroke from the hazard against the rules?

Answer:
You can place your entire bag in the bunker if you want, as long as you do not ground your club, test the conditions of the hazard or improve your lie (Rule 13-4, exception 1). Testing the conditions would consist of using a club to determine the texture, dampness or weight of the sand. In other words, you can't improve your chances of getting the ball out of the bunker. For you clumsy types, the exception also states: "...there is no penalty if the player (a) touches the ground in any hazard...as a result of or to prevent falling, in removing an obstruction, in measuring or in retrieving, lifting, placing or replacing a ball under any Rule or (b) places [her] clubs in a hazard."