Should fans or press be able to call out rules infractions?
Written by: Tony Korologos | Tuesday, October 18th, 2005
Categories: European Tour • LPGA Tour • PGA Tour • Web.com Tour
Categories: European Tour • LPGA Tour • PGA Tour • Web.com Tour
The latest Michelle Wie DQ incident sparks a question that has been coming up regularly in the golf world over the last few years:
Should fans, press or persons other than players or officials be able to “report” possible rules infractions?
There have been a few cases on the PGA Tour where fans actually called in after seeing a rules infraction on TV, and in some of those cases the players were penalized or disqualified.
Is this right? Is this good for professional golf? Golf IS a game of honor where the players are supposed to police themselves. Honorable players like David Toms take care of themselves on the course.
Though a member of the press may be citing a possible rules violation “for the integrity of the game,” who is keeping that press member in check for “the integrity of sports reporting?”
How much bearing on professional tournaments should the spectators or press have?
What about the infamous “Tiger and the big rock” incident? The fans in the gallery helped Tiger move a giant rock that Tiger and/or his caddy clearly could not move themselves. Was this rock really loose impediment? What’s next? Bring in a tractor?
Fans in many other sports (except perhaps occasionally baseball) can’t affect the outcome of the game directly. Fans don’t call in the NFL offices and report pass interference to the officials. Reporters don’t tattle to the umpires in baseball that the last pitch was a strike and not a ball.
In golf spectators or press can help out a player by finding his ball. They can conversely damn the player by busting him for an illegal drop.
I’m not saying I have the answer to this issue. I can’t think how anything might be changed, except for only allowing tournament players and officials participate in rules questions. But surely some infractions would slip through the cracks and someone would likely benefit from a mistake.
Funny golf video: Nice Birdie
A Wie little mistake causes DQ
Samsung World Championship
Michelle Wie made an illegal drop in her first tournament as a “pro” on the LPGA Tour. She was disqualified and missed out on her first pro paycheck of around $53,000. Not quite the debut she was looking for.
Amidst all the Wie fanfare Annika Sorenstam ran away with the win. She lapped the field by 8 shots. Message sent from Annika to Wie: “Not so fast turbo.”
#9 vs #390
World #9 Jim Furyk had the Michelin Championship in is grasp. All he had to do essentially was two putt on 18. But a 3 putt on 18 put him into a playoff with world #390 Wes Short.
Short wasn’t even slated to play but managed to get in as an alternate after another player couldn’t make it. Short birdied 18 to force the playoff. Ted Purdy should have been in the playoff as well but carded a triple bogey down the stretch when his approach shot hit a sprinkler head and went into the drink on the par three #17th.
Furyk and Short tied the first playoff hole, #18. The 2nd playoff hole was #17. Furyk pulled his tee shot into the water. All Short had to do was get up and down for par to win and he did just that. So #390 beats #9. #390 goes from wondering if he would be eligible for play on the 2006 PGA Tour, to having a boat load of cash and a two year exemption. Quite a bit of great fortune for a player who didn’t think he was even going to play in the tournament…
Eaglewood
Played a neat local course today called Eaglewood. The course is located quite far up the mountain side above Bountiful, Utah. There are some spectacular views of the valley and Great Salt Lake below.
75 with 5 birdies. Yep. Too many bogeys to go along with those birdies.
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