Posted on 04/12/2013 10:01:38 PM PDT by FlJoePa
Don't Drop the Ball, Augusta
On a day that so much attention was given to a rules infraction, it’s another rules infraction that everyone should be talking about.
We all know that 14 year old Guan Tianlang, competing at a level far beyond his age, was assessed a 1-stroke penalty for slow play. While basically nobody liked this ruling or agreed with it, it was technically correct.
USGA Rule 26 governs drops when a ball is in a water hazard. Per this rule, a player can replay the shot from “as nearly as possible from the spot from which the original ball was last played.” A player can also go back as far as he’d like keeping the flag and the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard in line.
When Tiger Woods hit his approach into hole 15, his ball caromed off the flagstick and went into the water hazard near the front-left portion of the green. Per Tiger’s post-round comments, he then went back to where he played from, but went 2 yards farther back. When he did this, I tweeted “Whe did TW's ball last cross the margin of the hazard? Near the bleachers. Shouldn't he have dropped on that line, not the line he did?”
Clearly, Tiger could have dropped from his original spot, but admitting that he dropped 2 yards farther back eliminates the “re-hit” drop option from consideration. The only other option he had was to keep the point where the ball last crossed the margin in line with the flag.
As I stated above, the ball bounced off the stick and rolled off the front-left portion of the green and into the hazard. That is the point the ball last crossed the margin of the hazard, and that is the controlling point for the line Tiger needed to take his drop from.
It’s absolutely within the realm of possibility Tiger just assumed his ball crossed the hazard on the line he originally hit it (it did, at first), but that line does not control where you take your drop. Check out the last paragraph of this Rules Decision:
“If a ball last crossed the margin of a water hazard as described in the situation above, it appears that the ball crossed the margin of the hazard three times (e.g., first, the initial time it crossed; second, when it crossed over the hazard onto land; and third, when the ball rolled back into the hazard). So when the Rule states that the ball must be dropped “keeping the point where the ball last crossed the margin of the water hazard directly between the hole and the spot on which the ball is to be dropped,” it is referring to the third (final) time. It is the reference point for the 26-1b option only.”
On a day that rules were being enforced, the Officials might want to go have a look at this one.
Do you really think that they are going to disqualify the so-called ‘king’ of golf?
Not in this lifetime! They may award him a couple of strokes. That I would believe.
Did he gain an advantage from this?
Why the cynicism? Has Tiger done something to offend you? He may not be the "king" of golf, but surly the "prince". And if his career stays on course, he will eventually be the "king" of golf.
Yes. He even spoke about it on camera. About getting a few yards behind his original location.
If he wanted to take that option (keeping entry point between him and the hole), he’d be in the woods to his left - because the ricochet sent the ball to 8 O’Clock, not 6 O’Clock where he hit it from.
The more I think about this, there isn’t any way out. He’s gotta be DQ’d.
I am not a Tiger fan, BUT I will say that I do not believe he would purposely cheat his competitors, because that is what breaking the rules in a torunament means, cheating the fellow competitors. ... And don’t anyone bother bringing up his cheating on his wife. I won’t discuss that vulgarity.
Competitors get DQ’d all the time. It doesn’t mean they’re cheaters. Just means they effed up.
And your favorite football, basketball, baseball player lived a perfect life? I don’t care about his personal life, just his athletic ability. If we could get rid of all athletes that live less then Christian lives ... sports would cease to exist.
Woods lack of integrity and character are the heart of the matter.
I’m not a Tiger fan either. But he brings attention to the sport.
TV viewers have had players DQ’d before. Contact Masters Tournament officials and register a complaint.
It’s been all over twitter for hours. They know what he did. He took a bad drop and signed a bad scorecard. It’s pretty simple.
Perhaps we shall see. If he bows out or takes a two stroke addition to his score, would that tend to persuade you that he holds the game in high regard?
There is a lot of petty Tiger hate on FR. Following his martial infidelity and subsequent troubles, leading to the attrition of hs game (and his fall in golf rankings) there were a good number of surprisingly happy FReepers. I am personally not a fan of Tiger, but I know he is one of golf’s greatest exponents. Moreover, his failings as a husband have nothing to do with my appreciation of golf and his accomplishments in the sport. I also have to admit being very happy with his new wind in the game, and rise to the top AGAIN.
We are of like mind.
Your post is the succinct point that the Green Jackets can’t ignore and seemed clear in the late CBS Master’s wrap-up show with Jim Nance and David Feherty. They did everything but say he would be DQ in the morning. The smart play for Tiger would be to get in front of it and DQ himself. His public perception would go up several notches, IMO.
If he’s found in violation of rule 26 (which I believe he was), he signed an incorrect scorecard. That means he would be disqualified. There’s no penalty shots at this point.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.