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NO


So you think Jack Nicklaus


really won the 1986 Masters with


a stirring, fi nal-round, back-nine 30? That was only 25 years ago, and not all television viewers have had a chance to digest what they witnessed. Wait, here’s Danny from


Duluth on Line One. He thinks he remembers seeing Nicklaus kick a stray twig on his way around Amen Corner. That can’t possibly be allowed at Augusta National, right? Sure, it seemed like Ti-


ger Woods outdueled Rocco Mediate in a captivating, 19-hole U.S. Open playoff at Torrey Pines in 2008. Great theater, but the public has not spoken quite yet. Hold on, just spotted a


tweet from @boredBetsy. She swears Steve Williams lined up behind one of Tiger’s putts, prematurely removed his cad- die bib on the No. 18 green and generally acted like a lout throughout the day. Welcome to amateur


hour in professional golf. We’re not here to rant against the almighty Rules of Golf. That’s an argument for another day, and rules obviously are needed to discourage Camilo Villegas from swatting divots away from his moving ball (not smart), Juli Inkster from practicing with a weighted club during her round (harmless but forbidden) and Padraig Harrington from letting his ball rotate ever so slightly on the green (innocent mistake). But we’re absolutely here


to rant against the way all three players were busted in recent months. PGA, LPGA


and European tour offi cials gladly accepted input from people not even remotely involved in the respective tournaments, beyond ignor- ing their honey-do lists and watching each shot with frightening overzealousness. Or, as Graeme McDow-


ell says with the authority and succinctness befi tting a reigning U.S. Open cham- pion, “Common sense has got to take over trial-by-TV and all this stuff.” Now there’s an idea. Look, there’s no fool-


proof way to offi ciate sporting events (just ask Jim Joyce over a beer and highlights of Armando Galarraga’s “perfect” game in 2010). But in all the furor over blown calls, from Joyce’s immortal gaffe to any number of screw-ups by NFL referees, baseball and football never contemplated seeking the help of fans. That would fall some-


where between preposterous and plain stupid. Golf still plows ahead,


desperate to connect with its ever-shrinking audience in any possible way. PGA Tour Commissioner Tim Finchem, in the wake of the Villegas and Harrington episodes in January, wisely called for re-consideration of the rules under which each player was disqualifi ed, excessively harsh punish- ment by any measure. Finchem then insisted he


welcomed spectator input on possible rules violations. “Cutting them off is not an option,” he said. Pardon my bluntness,


Mr. Commissioner, but cut them off. Immediately. They are called specta-


tors for a reason—they’re spectating, watching, seek- ing the entertainment and suspense of elite competi- tion. Rather than engage them in trying to solve this thorny problem, Finchem and other golf offi cials should get their house in order on their own. To wit: If the game truly prides


itself on integrity and self- policing, it must require players to take an annual rules seminar. Then maybe Villegas would know he’s not permitted to mess with the turf as his ball rolls back toward him, and maybe Dustin Johnson would remember not to ground his club in a bunker. (Even if the defi nition of “bunkers” at Whistling Straits was absurd, Johnson should have known the rule.) Given the prize money at stake each week, the ma- jor tours can hire one extra rules offi cial and assign him or her to television duty. Yes, the players on TV will come under extra scrutiny. Life isn’t fair. “We don’t need some


truck driver calling in


because he thought somebody grounded a club,” longtime tour pro Steve Flesch told Sports Illustrated in March. “Let’s just put a rules offi cial in the production truck when the telecast is


on. If any violations happen on TV, he’ll see them. It’s pretty simple.” Set a statute of limita-


tions on rules violations— say, two hours after the day’s round is completed. If a misstep is uncovered there- after, too bad. NBA offi cials do not revise foul calls the day after a game. This simple step—


common sense, to borrow McDowell’s modest request —would prevent the kind of retroactive dis- qualifi cations Villegas and Harrington sustained. There’s no perfect solu-


tion. Some rules always will be inane and other neces- sary ones will be diffi cult to enforce. Some players will understand the rules and others will remain eternally oblivious. But some truths also should remain sacred: Players play, offi cials offi ci- ate and spectators spectate. Now, hopefully, we can


all go back to watching tour- naments in peace, without keeping a rules book nearby. Ron Kroichick covers


golf for the San Francisco Chronicle.


Editor’s Note: Right before NCGA Golf went to press the R&A and the USGA announced a new interpretation of the rules that may apply in limited circumstances. This decision addresses the situation where a player is not aware he has breached a rule because of facts that he did not know and could not reasonably have discovered prior to returning his score card. Under this revised decision and at the discretion of the committee, the player still receives the penalty associated with the breach of the underlying Rule, but is not disqualifi ed.


SPRING 2011 / NCGA.ORG / 25


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