Final answer:
The correct answer is c) The tee markers, as it is the designated starting place for playing a ball on a golf course. Additionally, a golfer with a metal club in an open fairway is vulnerable to lightning and would not be safer under a tree; the safest action is to find shelter indoors or in a vehicle. The correct option is c).
Step-by-step explanation:
When the ball is in the teeing area, the correct place a player must play the ball from is c) The tee markers. The teeing area is the starting place for the hole to be played, and it is bound by the tee markers.
Playing from a designated sand trap or a hazard is incorrect, and while playing a ball from anywhere on the fairway might be part of a round of golf, it does not apply to the initial shot from the teeing ground.
As for the question regarding safety on a golf course during a thunderstorm, a golfer with a metal club over her shoulder is vulnerable to lightning because metal conducts electricity and could attract a lightning strike in an open fairway.
As the tallest objects in an open area can act like a lightning rod, it is extremely dangerous to hold metal objects aloft. Seeking shelter under a tree is also unsafe because trees are often struck by lightning, which can then conduct the lightning to the ground, and a person standing underneath could be at serious risk of injury or death as a result.
The safest course of action is to suspend play and seek shelter in a building or enclosed vehicle. Option c) is the correct one.