Thought for the Day
Life is 10% of what happens to you and 90% of how you react to it.
That was fun
You can’t beat a good rules controversy to get the argumentative juices flowing – or in Colin Montgomerie’s case, see you reduced to a red-faced, spluttering, outraged Colonel Blimp – and the USGA has just served up a lulu.
For those of you who couldn’t stay awake long enough to see the conclusion of the US Open, winner Dustin Johnson was served with a one-stroke penalty, presumably because he was deemed to have moved his ball while addressing it on the 5th green of the final round. I say ‘presumably’ because TV footage, and this must be the evidence that the USGA relied on to make its decision, showed very clearly that Johnson was not to blame – his ball moved spontaneously, something that happened at least twice more earlier in the week to other players. It occurred before Dustin grounded his club behind the ball and therefore, according to the rules, he had not addressed it, and you can only be deemed to have moved the ball if you have addressed it.
What TV footage also showed is that the ball rotated slightly backwards (that is, away from the hole and towards Johnson’s putter) and in several decades of golf viewing and playing I have yet to see that happen as a result of contact with a club. So the USGA seems to think that the new US Open champion is not only a very skilled golfer but is also able to defy the laws of physics.
But even that pales into insignificance when you consider the way the USGA dealt with the issue. As soon as his ball moved, Johnson called for a ruling and was told very clearly that there was no penalty. It took the USGA a further seven holes, however, to decide there might be a case to answer, and told Johnson on the 12th tee that he might be subject to a one-stroke penalty at the conclusion of the round, which he (and his closest rivals) then had to play with this legislative sword of Damocles hanging over their heads.
Incidentally, I have been advised in the past by several senior rules administrators that an on-course official is never wrong, even if he or she gives an incorrect ruling. The rationale for this is logical and fair – if you seek a ruling and consequently act as the official says, you cannot then be penalised if it turns out the ruling was incorrect or ill-considered. Johnson sought a ruling (from Mark Newell, the chairman of the USGA Rules Committee no less, the walking official with his game), was advised there was no penalty but then had this over-ruled by the USGA.
I will not repeat here my contempt for the USGA and the way it sets up courses for the US Open except to point out that over the course of its most prestigious championship, on at least three occasions, balls moved spontaneously on the greens when there was no wind blowing. This is the result of preparing frighteningly fast putting surfaces on greens that have roller-coaster slopes – have you ever seen so many three or four feet putts with about a foot of borrow? But as someone said on TV commentary, this is what you get when a tournament for (mostly) professional golfers is staged by amateurs.
The only good news from this debacle is that the one-stroke penalty imposed on the champion did not affect the result, and the uncertainty did not seem to affect his game. He really does appear to stroll through golf, and everything else, as if he has no worries and refuses to get flustered, no matter what life (or the USGA) throws at him.
Finally, fans of Shane Lowry may be tempted to suggest that his inability to hang on to his overnight lead was caused by the uncertainty surrounding Johnson’s score but this would be to ignore reality. Shane had a bad day at the office and had lost his 54-hole lead, having dropped shots at the 2nd, 5th, 9th and 10th holes, before hearing of Dustin’s problems. He then had three more bogies en route to a 76 that, while depressingly disappointing, had nothing to do with the USGA. Like many, many golfers before him, he discovered that leading a major after three rounds for the first time can seriously unbalance your equilibrium. He will be back.
Quote of the Week
When people say they dream of playing in the US Open someday, what they’re really saying is, they’d like to be good enough to play. Trust me, the US Open is not fun
Tom Weiskopf