The American's decision to play in the first big European Tour event of the year shows how appearance fees are changing golf's landscape.
Posted on 01/20/2011 7:33:05 PM PST by Zuben Elgenubi
Professional golf is changing and proof of that was to be found on the eve of the Abu Dhabi Championship as the great and good prepared for tomorrow's opening round of the first big European Tour event of the year. Lee Westwood was there, Martin Kaymer and Graeme McDowell, too, but inevitably the eyes were drawn to Phil Mickelson.
(Excerpt) Read more at guardian.co.uk ...
The American's decision to play in the first big European Tour event of the year shows how appearance fees are changing golf's landscape.
Email me if you want on the Golf Ping List
Visit PGA.com, an excellent site.
Do they even have decent sand dunes over there for a regulation golf course?
If I was given $1 million just for teeing it up, I'd miss the cut by 20 strokes and then spend the weekend in a bar with John Daly.
I believe it was Arnold Palmer who said that when you play in these overseas money-makers, take your appearance money but make sure you don’t win. If you win you have to show up the next year too!
That's funny.
Watch as Padraig removes his ball mark and nudges the ball. It doesn't seem to do more than wobble. But, apparently someone with a high def big screen ran and paused - backed up - and ran and paused and emailed in the alleged infraction.
Obviously there was no intention of gaining an advantage and no advantage was created. But, Padraig is DQ'd and gone from Abu Dhabi.
If a ball or ball-marker is accidentally moved in the process of placing or replacing the ball, the ball or ball-marker must be replaced. There is no penalty, provided the movement of the ball or ball-marker is directly attributable to the specific act of placing or replacing the ball or removing the ball-marker.Padraig needs to file a complaint with the USGA to get a specific Decision on this disqualification. As long as the ball ended up exactly where marked (it did) there was no violation of the rules.
Otherwise, the player incurs a penalty of one stroke under Rule 18-2a or 20-1.
20-1/15 Meaning of “Directly Attributable” in Rules 20-1 and 20-3a
Q. What is meant by the phrase “directly attributable to the specific act” in Rules 20-1 and 20-3a?
A. In Rule 20-1 the phrase means the specific act of placing a ball-marker behind the ball, placing a club to the side of the ball, or lifting the ball such that the player’s hand, the placement of the ball-marker or the club, or the lifting of the ball causes the ball or the ball-marker to move.
In Rule 20-3a the phrase means the specific act of placing or replacing a ball in front of a ball-marker, placing a club to the side of the ball-marker, or lifting the ball-marker such that the player’s hand, the placement of the ball or the club, or the lifting of the ball-marker causes the ball or the ball-marker to move.
Under either Rule, any accidental movement of the ball or the ball-marker which occurs before or after this specific act, such as dropping the ball or ball-marker, regardless of the height from which it was dropped, is not considered to be “directly attributable” and would result in the player incurring a penalty stroke.
His hand was in the process of grabbing the ball marker when it grazed the ball. That is directly attributable. The ball rocked then returned to its original position. That is replaced.
What say you?
I think I got it:
“European Tour senior referee Andy McFee said Friday that a viewer emailed to say Harrington replaced his ball on the green and, as he took the coin away, his hand moved the ball. Since the ball was not replaced, Harrington incurred a two stroke penalty not reflected on his scorecard.”
He could have replaced the ball without penalty, but failed to do so since he did not notice it had moved.
OK, but the video clearly shows that the ball rocked then fell back onto the same dimple, so it didn’t get moved, and it replaced itself to the proper point. I don’t think that was a two stroke penalty, and subesequently not a DQ for signing an incorrect scorecard. The was precisely the unintentional ball movement that 20-3a addresses.
Had the ball actually moved to a different spot, instead of just rocking, I can see the penalty for failure to replace. But calling it a penalty simply because the ball rocked is outrageous and uncalled for, IMHO, and doubly so when a viewer phones it in instead of a player or caddy challenging it at the hole. I’d bet at least a dollar that Harrington didn’t even realize he disturbed the ball.
Are we now going to introduce instant replay into golf?
Another fault I see with the rule. A complaint does no good once the tournament is over and the money has been paid out.
$1 million is good pay, but when you consider how much some of these guys make (I think Phil makes far north of $50 million a year with endorsements)money isn’t an issue. Sure it attracted him to the tourney, but there’s a far better field in a lot of the international events.
The Hope is boring now. B actors and has-been celebrities playing with golfers who no one has heard of. Two top-40 players? Look at the past champions when Hope was still around. When Hope passed, they should have shut down the event.
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