Lexi Thompson Assessed 4 Stroke Penalty. Loses Championship in Playoff!

TonyJesselli · 2017-04-03T03:27:26+00:00

Lexi Thompson was informed that she received a four stroke penalty as she walked off the 12th hole on Sunday at the ANA Inspiration. An email was received...

Rickochet

raggmann54 Each group has an official with them so if competitor or official does not see something then nothing happened.

Exactly. How difficult would this be for the PGA and LPGA to implement? And as was posted earlier this was probably posted by a Lexi hater. Not fair.

PA-PLAYA

Rickochet

Just a thought... but remember when Tiger's 3rd shot at the par5 15th in the Masters 3-4 years ago hit the flagstick and rolled back into the creek? Then he took an improper drop, then that entire fiasco broke out after he signed his card that Friday evening?

The USGA's rules were fairly clear as how to proceed.

The tournament committee felt that DQ would not have been justifiable. They assessed him a 2-shot penalty, amended his score from Friday's round accordingly, and told him to play-on.

At the time, there was enormous criticism... "preferential treatment because it happened to Tiger, they didn't want to risk losing tv ratings, etc." LOL... like Augusta National needs improved ratings, or that they feel they need to bow down before certain players. LOL

In retrospect, they handled that situation perfectly. Despite running contrary to the high-and-mighty USGA rules. And did the USGA come out and say anything negative afterward, talking about how egregious the Masters tournament committee acted, etc.? Hell no they didn't. Why? Because the Masters tournament reserves the right to run their show however the hell they want. And if it means sidestepping stupidity and implementing common sense, then all the better.

The LPGA could've done the same thing, had they wanted. They chose not to. Shame on them.

It was just a couple years ago when commissioner Tim Finchem considered the idea to invoke a local rule allowing the anchored putting stroke, despite whatever the USGA decided when that entire issue was still being debated. The PGA Tour, the LPGA Tour.... the USGA doesn't own them. These are exclusive organizations who use the USGA rules as a base for competitive play, but they're not obligated to follow everything to the letter. It's their prerogative.

ode

The problem with the Woods scenario at Masters was the committee initially looked at it and did not see the infraction, and did not assess the penalty until it was made clear to them what happened....and I believe this was a during round (when committed initially looked at it) and post round/after card signed (when they realized there error and assessing penalty). It was the committee correcting there own error for not protecting TW initially as it would have been corrected before the card was signed.

It was simply a flaw in logic by the usga.....if someone signs an incorrect scorecard and there are no post round assessed penalties, then sure, DQ them,you should know what your score is!.....but if there is a post round penalty assessed, for whatever reason, then there should be no additional penalty as it was not decided until after the round, unless intentional cheating is going on.....and IMO the overwhelming majority of these situations are for honest mistakes, not cheating. Two completely different scenarios, yet they used to handle them the same and for how long?

PA-PLAYA

ode

You're correct. On both counts.

Sneakylong

One more time. If the proposed rules changes are adopted in 2019 what she did would not be a penalty.

Here's the same scenario if it happened in 2019. A home referee feels compelled after he / she DVR's Saturdays round and sees that Lexi did not put her ball back in the same location emails the LPGA with his / her find.

The LPGA officials confront Lexi with this new information the next day. She responds that 'she made a reasonable attempt to return her ball to the same location'. With that answer she cannot be 'second guessed'. There is no penalty assessed. Absurdity avoided.

The email referee at home goes back to his / her Cheetos bag and the tournament is not tainted with stupidity.

Something else to consider with the current rule. When a player has to move their ball because they're in another players line, who decides if they moved it back to it's previous location? That would seem impossible to get back to it's original spot.

Some idiot calls up and says the players club angle did not match up with where his eyes were looking when he moved his ball or some other ridiculous claim that has no bearing on anything. Again, in 2019 there is no penalty because of the reasonable attempt language. Absurdity is avoided.

Bottom line. Golf should get back to policing itself. Get rid of home referees and these stupid archaic rules that have no effect on anything except to show how stupid many of these rules are.

The USGA needs to end all this absurdity now, not wait until 2019.

DC300

The things that I keep going back to on this, one it is not a level playing field if people can call in on a broad cast because that ONLY shows the interesting pairings. Somebody could cheat their way to thousands more in winnings and nobody could call it if they are in the middle of the pack, because they can't see it.

Secondly, the card she signed was correct, no penalties had been assessed. When she turned in the card it was correct and not a false card, you don't have a time machine to let her go back on it, you can't call that 2 stroke penalty. The LPGA fucked up royally.

Sneakylong

DC300

Remember that it's the LPGA and PGA that choose to follow these archaic USGA rules. They don't have to adhere to them, they choose to. If I was the LPGA and PGA I'd say we're adopting the proposed rule changes (for 2019) immediately so as to avoid anymore potential embarrassment.

Two years in a row the wrong woman won a major. In Anna Nordqvist's case I'd implement a rule that you cannot use zoomed in high definition to catch something the naked eye cannot see. She nicked a piece of sand that was not perceivable to her or anyone else without the aid of high def TV magnified.

The PGA / USGA were damn lucky Dustin Johnson went on to win the U.S. Open last year. In these cases there was no intent to cheat and the infractions were incidental and would not have changed anything.

It's gotten nuts and they know it.

newrider

Players are supposed to monitor themselves and playing partners. If something is missed it's missed. Using broadcast television to call rules infractions is inequitable. Front runners and top 10 players are under extra scrutiny. Video every golfer's shot on every hole in a tournament is the only way it could be equitable. There is a lot of money on the line making the cut, finishing in a top ten or actually winning the tournament. Every shot means something to someone.

This is why the PGA rounds have gotten so long. Players who know the rules want an official (not their playing partner) to rule on everything. Even then the arm chair quarterback at home can override a tournament official. That's nuts.

Sneakylong

For those who think she was avoiding a spike mark when she moved her ball, guess what? Proposed for 2019 you can tamp down spike marks.

My take on what she did was inadvertent on her part. Her playing partners coin was behind her ball. So as to not interfere with her line she squatted down beside her ball instead of behind hit. I could argue she was being considerate and it cost her.

So much for golf etiquette.

We've pretty much beaten this to death. Until of course it happens again. And with no changes slated until 2019, it will happen again.

Par4QC

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Rickochet

Do these pro's have no legal recourse against the PGA or LPGA? Fincham pussed out on support for not banning anchored putting and I thought several pros were considering legal action but nothing was every posted about it. Does the PGA have enough under the table bag squeezing power to prevent pro's from legal action?

Par4QC

Rickochet Well, they've always stated they are 'independent contractors'. They know where the 'job' is. They know the hours of 'work'. And, they know the rules of the employer & have agreed to such, coming to 'work' for them.

Don't like the rules? Don't take the job!! Can't bitch after taking the job with the set rules. The way of life in the workforce, as I see it/do it. And that job pays damn well, every jobsite, every week. And they are all 'working' under the same rules.

Except.....there was a slight glitch this time. She did not sign an incorrect scorecard. How could she? Even though I think she cheated*, it should have been only the 2 strokes. Or DQ.

*She started to hit the putt, then stopped. Marked and moved the ball. She seen something in the way. Not a doubt in my mind.

pellmell

@PA-PLAYA "Which begs the question: Lexi - why go through the pains to mark a 1-footer?"

She marked a 1 footer to improve her lie. Has she done it before? How many times? Is she related to Toski? 🙂

lambo

The real issue is all the professional tours and usga events could limit infractions to only those called by the players and rule officials on the course. Video could only be consulted if there are conflicting opinions limited to the players and rules officials.

This could be done during the next few weeks. Prior to HD and cell phones, that is basically how it was for decades, even with televised events.

Ringoblack

Spuzz

Spuzz, you saw it in real time? And you could notice the infraction without the ultra-close up? Just asking.

Spuzz

Ringoblack

In real time, you can see something looks "weird" and if a person was recording it (not me) it certainly was enough to draw your attention and rewind it, especially if you are one of those call in types.
I don't pay that close of attention, but it caught my eye in this case.
One of those things that your eye tells you something isn't right but your brain can't figure it out at first.
I didn't think anything of it until the video was shown on Sunday.

I personally don't think she was avoiding any spike marks or whatever.
I think she wanted to mark it, but there was another marker just behind hers, and hers would have been too close to it (likely would have been asked to move it) which is why she marked it from the side.
She is one of those annoying ones that mark to get the line on the ball just right, no matter how short the putt.
Irks me.
She got caught in no man's land and was careless, imo.

ode

Spuzz I think this speaks to how if there were no cameras, no way this would have ever been called.....I have not heard any reports of her playing partners/caddies or gallery saying they noticed.....And it took a close up of the footage to say for sure. IMO that's looking to penalize someone.

The pros who have come out after the fact and talked about players intentionally mismarking there ball by several inches to avoid spike marks, imperfections, or simply to be closer to the hole are noticable cheating which does not need a camera with close up, to tell. Lexi was one foot from the hole, I don't think her intent was mismarking the ball like the scenario above.....That being said....I still agree that it was a penalty, it's all the rest of it that stinks.

Ringoblack

Spuzz

Yes, she was careless. Too bad, but its on her. Those who mark to get alignment also bothers me. Thanks for the reply.

PA-PLAYA

Ringoblack

The alignment aids should be banned. They play a huge part of the slow play problem. Furyk and Zach Johnson are the poster children for said alignment mark OCD.

Ringoblack

Seems like back 10-15 years ago when there were no alignment aides on balls , pros still made their putts without a problem. Ban them.

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