The Local Rules Sheet That Screwed Dustin Johnson
by Ryan Ballengee on Aug 15, 2010 8:00 PM EDT
in Pro Golf
Email
PrintWe now have a copy of the Local Rules sheet that was delivered to players before the PGA Championship. This sheet is a list of supplmental rules that players must abide by in addition to the USGA Rules of Golf.
The first rule states:
Bunkers: All areas of the course that were designed and built as sand bunkers will be played as bunkers whether or not they have been raked. This will mean that many bunkers positioned outside of the ropes and some inside the ropes, close to the rope line, will likely include numerous footprints, have tire tracks during the play of the Championship. Such irregularities of surface are a part of the game.
Then, a Note: Where necessary, blue dots define the margin of a bunker.
Where were the blue dots for Dustin Johnson? There didn't appear any on TV.
[Hat tip to John Kim of the PGA for the pic.]
42 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Wow
I find myself feeling very disappointed with this outcome. Reminds me of how I felt last year after the British Open when Tom Watson bogeyed the last hole. I know I shouldn’t feel this way after such an exciting final round but this ruling, (even though it may be technically correct), just doesn’t feel right. The rules are the rules, I get that, but wow. We did end up with a deserving champion who played a great final round, congrats to Kaymer. I don’t know about anybody else but Dustin Johnson has a new fan in me; I hope he wins a pile of majors in the future.
Fight for your opinions, but do not believe that they contain the whole truth, or the only truth.
Charles A. Dana
AMEN TH,
amen…he sure does play some exciting golf….you stayin thirsty? STUB
Always thirsty.
Fight for your opinions, but do not believe that they contain the whole truth, or the only truth.
Charles A. Dana
Clearly the PGA did not designate this a bunker because there were no blue dots and the gallery was allowed to trample the surface.
This is a travesty and Dustin Johnson should not have incurred a penalty.
Look for blue dots to magically appear tomorrow surrounding the area.
Guys in unmarked black helicopters...
…will swoop in under cover of night this evening and paint the blue dots.
And a crop circle will appear in the 1st fairway.
Dots or not it’s still a hazard under the local rule.
I didn’t see a single blue dot and ol’ G-Blaze trundled through prob close to 100 of them on Saturday — some of them were massive and covered completely with footprints.
People should be attacking the PGA for their definition of a bunker this week. There was no doubt that was to be considered a hazard this week and no doubt he grounded his club.
I think DJ holds the accountability here.
http://thegreenblazer.blogspot.com
by TheGreenBlazer on Aug 16, 2010 1:33 AM EDT up reply actions
First of all – it wasn’t the rules sheet that “screwed” Dustin Johnson. That wasn’t a secret paper held out from competition until it could be sprung on some unsuspecting contender.
Second – the players were told BEFORE the tournament that all those areas inside and outside the ropes were considered bunkers.
So the “paper” didn’t screw anybody – Johnson did it to himself. RB – the ball was laying in the sand – you don’t need a blue dot to identify an area of sand.
What I can’t believe is that the “bunkers” outside the ropes, especially in the areas where the galleries were standing and moving, not to mention carts, were not ruled as waste bunkers since the players were not entitled to have the areas raked or cleared. You are allowed to ground your club in a waste bunker.
Just my opinion, but this rule and ruling turns this golf course into a very expensive piece of junk.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Now with this I agree.
What I can’t believe is that the "bunkers" outside the ropes, especially in the areas where the galleries were standing and moving, not to mention carts, were not ruled as waste bunkers since the players were not entitled to have the areas raked or cleared.
And that would have been a relatively easy distinction for all parties involved – players, rules officials, etc.
I agree...
with turnover agreeing with Court. Such a tragic set of circumstances.
I do have to ask…would normally the caddy assess the lie and be the “double check”? Had I not known the ruling it would have never occured to me that his ball was in a bunker…but after knowing they received some “warning” about bunkers all over, it would make sense that a lie be “checked”??
I write about golf at www.tees2greens.com, too.
I think Feherty assessed it correctly. Looking at the area, you would never say that was a bunker. Johnson isn’t known as the brightest bulb in the box, and in this case, the ball was dropped by player and caddy, but the player can’t really blame him. Johnson was informed of the rule. It seems a little common sense would’ve helped. Either call an official, who had to be close by since they were on 18 – or, if there is even the slightest question, don’t touch the sand. That’s a rule everybody knows.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
I agree Court
He was clearly in a Bunker or at a minimum a lot of sand. he should have at least asked for a ruling or at a minimum not grounded said club in the sand. Anyone that plays the game at their local muni. would at least know that rule. A pga tour player and caddy certainly should know better.
"pain is only weakness leaving the body"
Agreed, he should have asked
I also think that any bunkers outside the ropes should be considered waste areas. I say that simply because they could not be monitored or manicured.
by Charles Boyer on Aug 16, 2010 8:58 AM EDT up reply actions
According to Mark Wilson, the last 5 groups had a roving official walking with them, but they are told not to hover over the players since they aren’t used to having a special offiicial with them all the time. He was probably close by, but how do you find him in that crowd without asking for him ?
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Well,
This unfortunate play gave us something new to discuss. If not for this we would probably be discussing, “what happened to tiger” LOL Glad we are not.
"pain is only weakness leaving the body"
well court,,
Don’t be left out, they have a Tiger weekly fashion report over at tigerwoods.com hahaha
"pain is only weakness leaving the body"
Is it true...
that “bunkers” outside of the gallery ropes were considered waste areas in 2004?
I write about golf at www.tees2greens.com, too.
He might have known the second he did it
I know nobody wants to hear this, but there is no way Tiger Woods or Tom Watson make that mistake.
I thought it was apparent on the TV (50" HD) that it was a bunker, but it could have been different from his perspective. The second he grounded the club, I said, "he just grounded his club" but figured he knew the rule better than I did.
It’s unfortunate but I’m not sure if I believe him when he says it never crossed his mind. It seemed he put the club behind the ball then immediately realized that he might have just grounded his club in a hazard. Unsure of whether or not it was a hazard he backed off, stepped back in, grounded it again figuring they already saw him ground it once, so he may as well go with the I didn’t know if was a bunker route. That could be a stretch, but I thought that’s how it looked.
This golf course is still top notch and certainly not an “expensive piece of junk” as described above. The PGA’s local rule might have been junky, but it was clear there’s no sense changing it for 2015. DJ’s 72nd hole is reminder enough that you don’t ground your club in a sandy area at Whistling Straights without a ruling first.
http://thegreenblazer.blogspot.com
TGB – the more I hear about the ruling, I agree with you that my assessment of the course was a bit harsh – but there is no excuse for the excess of bunkers other than to mention that the designer is Pete Dye – and Pete has been known to lose his mind from time to time. :-)
But just because a course is pretty or difficult does not make it a course that should be hosting major events. If the grounds are not definable, then you are inviting this kind of situation. They had it in ‘04 with Appleby, and now it cost a player a chance at a trophy. Granted, it’s the player’s fault, the ball was laying in sand – but calling an area where the galleries and carts are allowed to roam makes a travesty of the definition of a bunker as a hazard.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Well DJ admitted that he never read the sheet, so a lot of this falls on him. The PGA avoided a major PR disaster when he missed that par putt on 18, though.
Been a Reds fan since 1996 and am desperate for a playoff run.
Did they?
DJ would have been in the playoff and given his ability to drive the ball, he may still have won.
This is a tragedy of sports, yeah, caused partially by DJ’s ignorance of the local rules, but in my honest opinion, he was not the only one who made a string of mistakes.
by Charles Boyer on Aug 16, 2010 8:37 AM EDT up reply actions
Yeah, DJ made a mistake, but anyone saying that it’s all his fault is completely wrong. (Like that pun?)
Find me! Email: ryan@thegolfnewsnet.com, Twitter: http://twitter.com/waggleroom, or Facebook: http://facebook.com/waggleroom.
by Ryan Ballengee on Aug 16, 2010 10:08 AM EDT up reply actions
did the PGA run out of red paint?
"(I)f you think you've got an inside track to absolute truth, you become doctrinaire, humorless and intellectually constipated." Saul Alinsky
red paint ? you don’t paint around bunkers. red stakes and red painted lines are used for side and water bounderies.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
The question no one is asking....
Where the hell was his CADDY to remind him of the local rules?
In competition even the best players can get a rush of adrenaline, and physiologically, when you are tense, you cognitive functions diminish to some degree. No, that’s not making an excuse for DJ, but DJ happens to pay someone to be his second set of eyes and his defacto alter ego when it comes to iffy situations.
Where was he?
Why didn’t he say anything?
Why didn’t he ask to have the official clarify?
Why didn’t he clear the bunker?
Yeah, he was probably all excited too, but HIS JOB is to be THAT GUY.
The first thing I do
when I go to a new course, is to get a score card and read the local rules…There is so much variance from club to club, it’s absolutely esential….The thing that stands out to me on this local rule, are two words…DESIGNED and BUILT as bunkers….According to that, they are saying, that any sand on that course is a bunker….Wow….I wonder what they would say, if the sand was spilled while being taken to a spot that was designed to be a bunker….no excuse for DJ, but the PGA really blew this one….STUB
so you didn’t look at the picture of the bunker ?
you read the local rules – you know that a local rule supercedes a regular rule – the rule was clear – the PGA did not screw up.
"this ball will fit in that fairway"
Like that little baby on the E-TRADE commercial says.
“How about reading the rules, SHANKAPOTOMUS”
"pain is only weakness leaving the body"
Like that little baby on the E-TRADE commercial says.
“How about reading the rules, SHANKAPOTOMUS”
"pain is only weakness leaving the body"
How does that happen ?
I swear I only posted it once. I’ve seen other double post in the past hmmmmm
"pain is only weakness leaving the body"
The "ring" man always posts twice.
(PG’s a former boxer, for those unaware. And, according to ESPN The Magazine, he left the sport untrampled upon.)
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
Have a golf story tip? Contact editor Charles Boyer and he will follow the story! Thanks!
Related FanPosts on Waggle Room
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
