The American Spectator

Joe| 8.16.10 @ 6:32AM

I was watching live and I would agree with you except for one thing. I remember my first thought as Mr. Johnson addressed the ball was "Be careful, that looks like a bunker." If I thought it, he should have at least considered it and gotten a ruling. The fault lies with the rule that established that bunkers outside the ropes would be treated as in-play bunkers.

water hazrd| 8.16.10 @ 5:19PM

I'm lucky if I shoot in the 90's, the only rule I'm really familiar with is the snowman, but yeah me too, first thought when the camera showed the ball...bunker.

mames| 8.17.10 @ 11:15AM

If that looked like a bunker to you then maybe that explains your scoring? At best it was a waste area and the rule that defined it as a bunker is out of alignment with reality. a joke of a course anyway - right out of a Dr Seuss story.

DLB| 8.16.10 @ 7:19AM

Hey, you forgot to mention the most important issue! How does this affect Tiger Woods?

Mike Richardson| 8.16.10 @ 8:08PM

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Cabermon| 8.16.10 @ 9:31PM

Tiger would not have been penalized, since he is The One, and The One can do no wrong. He is The Golden Child.
It's fun to watch golf again now that he's seldom in the hunt.

DatsunMark| 8.17.10 @ 12:55AM

Kinda like Obama with low pol numbers.

mames| 8.17.10 @ 11:22AM

Has anyone noticed that now that tiger's true character has been discovered and he is no longer seen as an all american athlete and therefore even if he plays great again he will always have that cloud over his head that he is uable to get his mind around his swing? Seems to me that if he can't be number one as his daddy so often told him or "more influential than Jesus" as his dad said then he isn't able to perform? A little narcissism? Tiger has proven he will never be the full man as was Nicklaus, Player, Palmer.... men who were great on and off the course and who lost with class.

D| 8.16.10 @ 7:29AM

Just once I want to read something by Quin Hillyer where he's not whining. Is it possible?

The players were notified of the rules. As Dustin Johnson himself said, maybe he should have read them. Nick Watney said that "We get a sheet every week; nobody reads the sheets."

This was very unfortunate, though, I agree.

Clint Brooks| 8.19.10 @ 4:34PM

Obviously, part of the problem, in addition to the PGAs Pharises-like reading of the specific rule, is that the normal sheets that come out address pretty common local rule changes. This particular course has a very odd way of dealing with waste bunkers: They're all considered "real" bunkers. The PGS should have told the course officals, sorry but that's not good enough for the PGA Championship.

With all due respect, reflexive appeal to "the rules" isn't good enough here. As Hilyer has demonstrated in his piece, there's plenty of reason under the rules of golf to give Johnson the benefit of a doubt (although the balance suggestion was the only thing that I don't completely buy. Johnson didn't seem too unbalanced when he took the shot.)

Personally, I think the grounding rule is one of the worst rules in golf. If it didn't exist, players would all have the same advantage, and quite frankly, on municipal courses and other inconsistently tended venues, the traps consistency often vary wildly. It's a rule that is tailor made as a way to trap players, rather than provide any additional fairness to the game. It's a relic that has caused more than it's fair share of trouble.

The abuse of the rule by the PGA is just another example of this. The PGA owes Johnson and golf fans an apology for their mindless legalism.

PCP Smoker| 8.16.10 @ 7:40AM

Don't waste ink on this Johnson. He blew the lead he had going in Pebble Beach, and it sounds like he blew it again. Choker.

gap wedge| 8.16.10 @ 11:58AM

PCP Smoker, get used to ink on Dustin Johnson, we will see, read & hear about the ruling the rest of our lives. You wouldn't be so negative toward Johnson if he didn't hit the ball twice as far as you, you're a TOAD.

PCP Smoker| 8.16.10 @ 11:16PM

I'm not negative. I was pulling for him and I never denied he can hit. He can hit like a mother. But, remember that melt down in Pebble Beach? Remember him looking for his ball in the woods?
Get a little less emotional about the guy and you will be able to see a choker when you look at Dustin.
Peace out, brother.

AMENBRO| 8.17.10 @ 1:05PM

Send me some of that PCP I agree with ya.

When you get to it & you can't do it

THAIRE YA BLOODY WELL ARE

CB| 8.19.10 @ 4:40PM

Yeah, he's such a choker that he managed bogey after hitting well off the fairway. It was only the overzealousness of PGA officials that kept him out of the playoff. If Johnson was such a choker, he'd have pulled a Van der Veldt.

You stay classy, though.

Curly Smith| 8.16.10 @ 7:58AM

I agree with everything except that it hurts the "spirit of golf". The preening officiousness exemplifies the "spirit of golf" where one uses the arcana of rules and local knowledge to gain advantage.

Consider the rule that says "All areas of the course that were designed and built as sand bunkers will be played as bunkers (hazards)....". The player must know the original design and construction specifications of the course plus any alterations that had taken place because, by the rule, if an area was ever a bunker then it's always played as a bunker. If a fairway bunker were filled with sod during a course redesign then the area would still be played as a bunker because the area was designed and built as a sand bunker.

And that is the "spirit of golf".

J K McGowan| 8.16.10 @ 8:06AM

The players were told in advance to be aware of the many bunkers on the course. Let's not liberalize golf by pretending that actions do not have consequences.

Old Soldier| 8.16.10 @ 11:41AM

Were they told to expect spectators standing in the bunkers? Or that the bunkers could be camouflaged as dirt and / or grass?

A bunker that cannot be recognized as such by professional golfers and caddies is a gotcha and an embarrassment.

tdiinva| 8.16.10 @ 3:42PM

There are picture of spectators in the bunker at the 1929 US Open at Winged Foot while Bobby Jones was hitting out of the bunker. This isn't the first event where spectators got to stand in bunkers.

Bob Jones IV| 8.16.10 @ 8:07AM

Quin, I'm surprised at you.

1. The course was prepared with that spot as a sand trap. The CBS map even showed it to be one.

2. The local rule sheet, which was no secret, specifically stated that not all sand traps were within the ropes and that sand traps outside the ropes were still hazards. This sheet was provided to all the players prior to the start of the tournament, was posted in the contestants' locker room, and - as Jim Nantz said - was even explained to the media on Wednesday prior to the tournament.

3. It is the responsibility of the player to know the rules. Had Mr. Johnson had a question, he should have called for a rules official to determine the answer.

What happened with Mr. Johnson was unfortunate, but it was the according to the rules as established and publicized by the PGA.

To ask the PGA to change their published rules after the fact is neither equitable to Mr. Johnson nor to the rest of the field that abided by them.

Sorry, old friend, but on this one you are all wet, or - should I say - covered with sand.

Next year, at the Atlanta Athletic Club, we won't have all of those stupid sand traps!

G-Tom| 8.16.10 @ 9:53AM

As to no. 3, Johnson did NOT have a question aboutit being a bunker. When have YOU ever seen spectators STANDING in a bunker.
Sorry, Bobby, you wrong.

Russ| 8.16.10 @ 10:08AM

Not only spectators but a MARSHALL holding a "Quiet Please" sign!

Quin| 8.16.10 @ 10:41AM

Bob,
I saw your comment re my PGA column and I appreciate it. I write, however, to clarify my column and subsequent posts (which i hope you also saw). My contention is not that Johnson should not be held to the rules, but that the rules themselves were not clear. The rules said that anything DESIGNED as a bunker should still be played as a hazard no matter what condition it is in. To me, it is not at all clear that it was an area designed as a bunker. Even David Feherty thought it was not a bunker, AFTER THE FACT, while standing in it. It doesn't matter that "not all sand traps were within the ropes and that sand traps outside the ropes were still hazards," if the thing was NOT a sand trap in the first place.
I did not see the CBS map. CBS didn't seem to highlight it, unless I somehow fell asleep for 60 seconds, which I highly doubt. But I would be willing to bet that not every sand trap on the course -- all 1200 of them -- is listed as such on the course map given the players.
Clearly Mr. Johnson didn't even have a question. To him, as to Feherty, it didn't seem anything like a sand trap. Not only did it have no obvious lip, especaillyon the low side whch is where lips go, but it had almost no sand in it. It was almost entirely ahrdpan. If you don't have a question, you won't think to ask an official "to determine the answer."
Therefore, I am NOT asking the PGA to "change their published rules." I am contending that the rules themselves were ambiguous, and that the rule of equity -- which is WITHIN the Official Rules of Golf -- therefore mitigates in the player's favor when the player clearly gained no advantage and had no "mens rea," to use a term from criminal law. He had no intent, no guilty mind, and gained no advantage -- and the ground on which he sat was NOT clearly a sand trap of any kind.
I am a stickler for the rules in formal competition, even if I think the rules are stupid. (The OB rule is an example of a stupid one; OB should be played as a lateral hazard, not as a stroke-and-distance penalty; but I would never in formal competition suggest that the OB rule not be enforced as written.) Again, I went to great lengths to explain that I was suggesting that WITHIN the rules, Johnson should not have been assessed a penalty.
Thanks very much, my friend.
Quin
(ALSO EMAILED TO BOB)

michigander_sandusky| 8.16.10 @ 8:57PM

CBS had maps of all the bunkers?! Hells bells the announcers couldn't even agree on how many bunkers there were! If you've ever attended a PGA event you know the area at the margin of the ropes (especially on 18th hole) are an absolute mess...trampled grass, trash, footprints, etc., etc. The ground didn't appear to be a bunker to me or anyone watching the event at my club. PGA=pea-headed grinch a***holes. Dustin got the shaft right up the wazoo!

mames| 8.17.10 @ 11:11AM

This design is a penal course trying to be a links. The real solution would be that all sand outside the ropes is waste area. Across the lake in Arcadia MI is a real links course wihout the pathetic manic use of bunkers and which allows for the golfer's shotmaking creativity. WS is only recongized because of the wealth of its owner, otherwise it would seen as the tricked up joke that it is.

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 8:30AM

The fact that all the players were given advance notice of this possible scenario is the kicker here. My immediate thought upon seeing the lie was that is was a bunker anyway. Hell, the whole freakin course was a bunker it seemed. If it was even close, which it was, he should have known better. Caddie slightly at fault for not making issue of it prior to shot selection.

Roddy McCauley| 8.16.10 @ 8:40AM

The idea that PGA officials are effectively ruining the game by being too officious on creating rules and overly meticulous in applying them is utter nonsense; ironically, it is in fact quite the opposite. How many times has Mr Hillyer played a round of golf and not had someone try and take advantage of the rules? That's happened to me on a few occasions (most recently: "Can I have drop away from that tree because it's in my eyeline?"). Perhaps American club golfers have higher integrity levels than us Europeans, but it is the raft of unambiguous rules published by both the USPGA and the R&A that allows us to eliminate the kind of subjective interpretation of such situations.

Hillyer states that Johnson "barely" touched the sand. Well, how much sand would you suggest he had to have touched before he was penalised? How's about one grain - thereby eliminating any misinterpration of "barely".

And, by the way, local rules have priority over PGA rules, and there is no excuse for not knowing them. Millions of dollars in prize money, fame and glory, Ryder and President's Cup ... you would have thought that participants wouldn't risk losing any of that by not reading the sheets - so tough luck if you haven't prepared enough Mr Johnson, but you only have yourself to blame.

Arnold Ahlert| 8.16.10 @ 8:46AM

Sorry Quinn, no sale and even Johnson himself knew it: he turned down an offer to view the footage in hi-def in a CBS news truck. In other words, he knew he grounded his club.

The only thing the PGA can be rightly accused of is poor crowd control.

As for following the rules, this is one American who believes the infatuation with "flexibility" is one of the primary reasons America is the mess it is.

CB| 8.19.10 @ 5:21PM

Remind yourself of this the next time you find yourself complaining about the tax code.

michael moss| 8.16.10 @ 8:55AM

How is one supposed to know whether an area has been "prepared," or whether the sand in it has "replaced" soil that was once there? As that would be impossible, one apparently must assume that every grain of sand, anywhere on the course, is a bunker, regardless of whether the area looks anything like a bunker. On a Pete Dye course, that would be absurd. As a compromise, I would be prepared to require Mr. Johnson to master the Rules of Golf and all locker-room notices and post-its as soon as Timothy Geithner had mastered all the provisions of the Internal Revenue Code and posted Regulations.

Tomp| 8.16.10 @ 9:06AM

Watch drag racing - way more exciting.

tdiinva| 8.16.10 @ 9:21AM

Mr. Hillyer sounds just like a liberal whiner.

First, as has been pointed out repeatedly, Dustin Johnson and his caddy were given the rules sheet on arrival.

Second, Johnson is a long enough hitter to have bombed his three wood far enough down the fairway to play for the middle of the green. He chose his driver and hit a really bad shot.

Three, his caddy should have reminded him that he was in a the bunker. Providing situational awareness is part of the caddy's position description.

Fourth, there is a simple rule of thumb in golf. When in doubt don't ground your club.

Fifth, when Johnson grounded his club in the bunker it rested enough in the sand to leave an impression. That doesn't constitute barely in my book.

Tournament golf is a high pressure activity where you have to keep your wits about you. Great champions don't make those kinds of mistakes because they maintain good situational awareness despite the immense pressure of the moment.

As the famous driving range pro and people's hero Roy McAvoy once said "you can define moment or the moment can define you." Dustin Johnson let the moment define him and he lost the 2010 PGA championship.

CB| 8.19.10 @ 5:06PM

tdiinva sounds like a typical whining legalist.

Hilyer's point is that the bunker rule was poorly conceived (in part because the local rule the PGA mistakenly agreed to implement is a shoddy trick, turning waste bunkers and other poorly managed ground into "legal" hazards).

It's common practice at all decent courses to clearly mark hazards, and the vast majority of bunkers at most courses are clearly bunkers. Whistling Straits is a pretty course, but the bunkers rule is an example of tricked up golf, designed to catch golfers in mistakes rather than test their ability.

That's the problem with the grounding rule in the first place. No one ever explains why the rule is important (It's not - Absent the rule all golfers would have the same advantage to test the ground - Hazards are still challenges beyond that) but plenty of people still call in to claim this pro grounded their club or that one made a particular mistake.

The Johnson incident demonstrates one of the biggest problems with golf rules: they seem to exist more from tradition or technicality than from an attempt to fairly test the skills of the participants. That so many golf "traditionalists" are attempting to justify the PGAs ham-fisted underminding of their crown jewel tournament only suggests that too many golfers are obsessed with the same technicalities rather than the real joy of golf: the technical abilities of the players.

The only ones defined by the moment Sunday were the PGA. Their decision to implement a poorly designed local rule in the strictest way possible only defined where their greatest interest lies. It's a moment that will live in sports infamy.

And it's disgusting to watch people try to make Johnson the fall guy for this. The only trap Johnson stepped into on the 18th on Sunday was the metaphorical one the PGA and the owners of Whistling Straits set up for him.

Bob| 8.16.10 @ 9:31AM

I wonder if it had been Tiger Woods under the same circumstances would a penalty have been called?

D| 8.16.10 @ 9:45AM

What a stupid thing to say. I'll bet Tiger and most everyone else in that tournament knew the rules, notwithstanding Watney's comment that nobody read them.

You know, Stuart Appleby had a two-stroke penalty called on him in the 2004 PGA Championship for similar reasons, and I believe it cost him the lead at the time. People remember this. Nobody else commited the same error, did they?

This was a mistake of inexperience and inattention, IMHO. If you want to win a major, it would be helpful to know the rules. No excuse here.

Bob| 8.16.10 @ 10:08AM

You missed the point big time. Woods has had many instances where penalty strokes if not DQ's should have been administered plus questionalbe officiating benefiting Woods. Besides Appleby received a four stroke penalty and if the rules were enforced so should have Johnson. He grounded the club not once but twice.

tdiinva| 8.16.10 @ 10:18AM

You obviously don't the rules. Once you address the ball in a hazard and ground your club there is only a single two stroke penalty. Appleby did two different things to get the 4 stroke penalty.

Tiger would know that he was in a bunker. So would Phil, so would Jim Furyk, and almost every other top golfer

Gold BC| 8.16.10 @ 12:46PM

I see your point. If Woods had committed an infraction be it this same sand fiasco or something else would a rule official call him on it and penalize him costing Woods the tournament. I doubt it too ESPECIALLY a major.

Nebraska Sam| 8.17.10 @ 1:50PM

Indeed, substitute Woods for Johnson, making the same "mistake" grounding his club in the sand before swinging but unlike Johnson making the par putt and "winning" the tournament. NO WAY a PGA official privy to the situation penalizing Woods two strokes costing him a major knowing his fate would be worse then Steve Bartman.

ncatty| 8.16.10 @ 9:34AM

I bet Quin takes "mulligans."

KyPerson| 8.16.10 @ 9:38AM

Sorry, I can't care all that much. I really, really don't like golf. Snobbish, boring game.

Bruce| 8.16.10 @ 9:52AM

Quin, your opinion is out of character for you. As stated by another commenter, you sound like a liberal.
It was unfortunate for Dustin, but I admire his character. Not surprisingly, he, his caddy, the rules official walking with the group (and even the crowd) got "caught up in the moment" and failed to recognize even the chance that he was in a bunker. The PGA did the only thing that they could do in keeping with the rules set out at the beginning of the tournament. I'm sure that they would have called the same thing on Tiger or any other pro. This clearly sets golf apart from other professional sports. Can you imagine how a football player, a basketball player, or a baseball player would have reacted?
Dustin is a class act, and I'm sure he will get over this and learn from it.

CB| 8.19.10 @ 5:13PM

Yet, seasoned, experienced pro David Ferehty didn't recognize the ground as a bunker after the fact.

Yes, Johnson reacted with class. It's the PGA's attitude and many golfers legalistic attitude to the sport that's in question here.

Everyone agrees in the need for rules, but fair rules are clear ones, not ones that hinge on one group's interpretation in the face of widely differing opinions. Face it, not everyone agrees the area was clearly a bunker and Hilyer's own description of the rules suggests the PGA's sheet was inconsistent with the general rules of golf.

Calling Quin a liberal doesn't cover over this. It's only a shoddy ad-hominem on top of shoddy reasoning about the issue.

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 9:52AM

Hey Ky, You need to get a lesson & go tee it up a few times before you bag it. I have had several friends with your attitude & after a few trips they are ringing me up to get out there all the time. Excellent sport that virtually anyone can play & enjoy.

BCinTN| 8.16.10 @ 9:56AM

I think Hillyer made some good points and, although I'm no liberal, I don't think the rules were clear. Something that struck me is that at no time during the period that Dustin Johnson was setting up for his shot did any of the announcers make note of the fact that he was in a bunker, nor did any of the folks watching with me pick up on it. No, we didn't have the rules sheet, but I would think the commentators did and would have been familiar with the golf course. So it does seem that the only people that recognized that spot at a bunker were the rules officials. What we did notice is that it appeared the lack of crowd control put Mr. Johnson at a disadvantage. I'll bet they would have had to clear out the crowd for Tiger. Maybe the PGA should just take that course off the schedule if they can't mark hazards and in/out of bounds more clearly, or control the crowd.

Publius| 8.16.10 @ 10:25AM

BCinTN,

Are you sure you are not a liberal? Seems like you are giving Dustin a pass and blaming everyone and everything else. I feel for Dustin but believe me, he understands, unlike you.

Actually, this is a great moment for golf ---rules are rules, have consequences, and are not subject to subjective interpretation.

Go PGA.

BCinTN| 8.16.10 @ 11:18AM

No, not blaming "everyone and everything" - just the PGA, the ratty course, and its rules committee. I hope the PGA will rethink going back there in 2015 but maybe they can at least force the course owner to clean it up by then.

Old Soldier| 8.16.10 @ 11:58AM

I always thought it was the liberals who love multitudes of arcane rules written in vague and confusing language. Then the rules are enforced by mindless, arbitrary, bureaucratic morons. Nothing makes a liberal rules enforcer happier than a good “gotcha”. This is exactly how our Federal Justice system has come to operate.

Conservatives like simple, easily understandable rules.

GW| 8.16.10 @ 4:15PM

+1

Exactly what I wanted to say.

CB| 8.19.10 @ 5:14PM

Bingo!

CB| 8.19.10 @ 5:17PM

I should add that calling someone a liberal because they're bothered by the PGA's arcane adaptation of the overwritten local rules, is a bit like someone a liberal because they think the tax code is too complex and often ill-applied.

gap wedge| 8.16.10 @ 1:00PM

PGA already has it on the schedule, 2016 I think.

Petronius| 8.16.10 @ 10:20AM

File this under, implied, assumed, and unwritten right to not get screwed. A 2 shot penalty and a reduced check for 3rd place is nothing like a conservative college freshman having his life ruined by an institution like Duke University, et. al.

Bob K.| 8.16.10 @ 10:35AM

Golf was originally a recreational game for amateurs. Rich amateurs who could meet and have a good time socially and discuss business deals. They needed employees to keep the courses on decent shape. Some of these employees learned how to play the game very well during their terms of emplyment. This lower class of people learned that they could make some money teaching the rich amateurs how to improve their game.

Thus began the start of professional golf.

The professionals were always looked down on by the amateurs who owned the courses and the country clubs that were part of the recreational facilities that were known as golf courses. They are still looked down upon by these owners and members of the clubs. The amateurs, in turn, realized they could make big bucks holding tournaments for these professionals. And better yet, they could get alot of advertising and tax write offs from them. Television realized that there was much money to be made from the retirees and wannabes and small businessmen who like this sort of activity.

These silly regulations are simply reminders by the people who run this recreational pursuit (It is not really a game to most duffers!) that it is they who are in charge and that the Professionals had damn well remember that and be properly deferential to them for allowing them a share of the enormous profits they make from it.

Bob Grant| 8.16.10 @ 12:15PM

That's about the best synopsis of the game of golf I have ever read. Short, to the point, interesting, and accurate.

The quirkiness of golf is what appeals to me. Read the history of St. Andrews for more of this quirkiness. For instance, if you arrive at St. Andrews and would like to play - assuming you have the means - and the course is empty, you may or may not be allowed to depending on the mood of the person at the door who makes such decisions.

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 10:39AM

"A prepared area of ground." This is what defines a bunker. If this was a "prepared area of ground," then it counts as a bunker, and he should have been penalized. The problem is, no one knows exactly how many bunkers are on the course! If that is the case, then how can you define something as "prepared" as opposed to just accidental, as this appears to be, which should have been considered a waste bunker. A rule is a rule, but lately we have become more and more ruled by pencil-pushing ninnies who simply violate the spirt of the particular rule or law. This is the equivalent of a zero-tolerance school district suspending a seven year old for bringing to school a squirt gun. The INTENT of the rule is to prevent kids from shooting and possibly killing other people w/ real bullets from real guns--not protecting someone from the harmless spray of water from a plastic toy.

Clinton nee Publius| 8.16.10 @ 11:06AM

Quinn Hiller is giving Obama a run for his money in the category of tone-deaf journalism.

With all of the challenges facing our society, you decided to whine about the arbitrary application of rules in a game of leisure.

Gee, I wonder if you are part of the ruling class and decided we needed to be taught a lesson...

GW| 8.16.10 @ 4:19PM

So now Obama is a journalist? I mean, I don't like our current president, but I wouldn't call him a journalist.

gearjammer| 8.16.10 @ 11:07AM

I go Maine and play 8-10 rounds with my wife and other assorted chums on a simple , most pedestrian 9 hole course, that happens to offer super views of the Maine Coast. The game we play is nothing like this Dork Festival of modern golf-call it BIG GOLF. We will have alot of fun the next time we play accusing one another of " grounding" , and insisting some dried up puddle is a bunker. All organized sports are becoming one giant hybrid of a Monty Python-Mel Brooks-Alfred Hitchcock-Ingmar Bergman-Three Stooges Movies. Some of you here were actually watching golf when you coulda been outside doin sumptin ? I guess the rich are different.

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 11:15AM

Hey gearjammer, Is there a lucid point somewhere in your rambling, incoherent statement?? First of all, you play golf with your wife. The game was invented as an excuse to escape your spouse. Secondly, if you play 10X / yr on the Maine coast, you are spending some $$ so shut up about "rich " people.

gearjammer| 8.16.10 @ 12:03PM

Steve "A" , my wife would probably kick your " A" teeing off from the white markers. It costs us 32 bucks for the both both of us. She carries both bags, and she's not some Russian female shotputter as she is five feet six inches tall and 127. Gobble up some valium Steve and you can have that calm, placid demeanor of a pro golfer. They need the next Fuzzy asap. Steve I understand your dilema-give to a worthy charity or spend a grand on yet another new diver to get another two feet on your drive-keep spending you'll be bombing it out there 180 pretty darn soon.

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 12:49PM

Hey gear, My guess is that your wife's name is really Ted & you swap the dress at the turn so you can each hit from the reds for 9.

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:08PM

Steve, that is definitely a cheap shot. My bad, I thought only libs engaged in that type of trash-talking.

Believer| 8.17.10 @ 9:17AM

Hey Steve A- This is just to good, this started out as a comment section on golf and quickly became a comedy hour. A lot more entertaining than golf, keep it up.

Old Soldier| 8.16.10 @ 11:25AM

I always thought I could identify a bunker with the following criteria.

- It has sand, not grass.
- There is a rake and a border between the bunker and the fairway or rough.
- During a tournament, there aren't fans standing in it!

jrjr| 8.16.10 @ 4:51PM

Hey Old Soldier -- "- There is a rake ...." They would have 6,786 rakes to take care of just the front nine. Pretty sorry golf course and crowd control irrespective of who is to blame, or not.

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:10PM

Yeah, well this is mini-golf for adults...get used to it.

Mojo Risin| 8.16.10 @ 11:38AM

If that area where Dustin Johnson's ball had landed was raked, he would undoubtedly have abided by the rules of golf without question. I watched the whole thing unwind and said to myself, loudly, how can that be a bunker with people standing in it and the area that Feherty described as resembling a "manger." This decision requires a rule change and/or clarification, no matter the pre-tournament bunker notification. Yes the rules are the game of golf and need to be followed or the game is dead, but in this case "wiggle room" was warranted. Johnson was hosed!!!

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:20PM

Agree totally. He was careless in not checking w/ the officials, and is at fault. But the rules need to change. Imagine if he sunk his putt on 18 and won...and then a half hour later, the ninnies came up and said--Sorry, you need to relinquish that wannamaker trophy...

Pete| 8.16.10 @ 11:48AM

Caddying for my grandpa as a youngster , God rest his soul, completely ruined the game for me.

Bob Grant| 8.16.10 @ 11:49AM

Quin. Your overreaction is amazing. The PGA official interviewed by CBS admitted it was an unusual rule but stated the players were provided plenty of fair warning throughout the week. Even the player admitted as much.

This used to be the responsibility of the caddy to be updated on course conditions, including local rules. Additionally, the player should have had the presence of mind to ask for a ruling. It's part of golf course management.

David Feherty's knee jerk reaction to defend the player was sad but typical. Instead being a REAL analyst, he was true to form as a cheerleader, when he's not up Tiger's tookus.

Do we enforce a stated rule or don't we? That's the only issue.

GW| 8.16.10 @ 4:23PM

As a former player, David Feherty knows best the pressures and silly rules golfers must deal with. The point of the rules of golf (or any type of regulation) is to provide a fair system of conducting the competition. As Quin stated, Dustin Johnson did not gain an advantage in grounding his club, nor was the bunker "clearly defined" as shown by the gallery, lack of a lip, and the mixture of packed down straw/grass/dirt/sand.

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:28PM

Hey aren't you the Palin-trasher??? The problem is, it is all a big game of "GOTCHA!!!" Yeah, Johnson screwed up, and he deserves his fate. BUT, if you are going to have the most Mickey-Mouse course in the world, just put a silly Micky-Mouse flag at every "conventional bunker." That way, we can alleviate any confusion. Johnson was approached by the officials, and responded--What bunker? If that was a bunker, than I am a dog and I am gonna take the biggest, nastiest dump right in the son-of-a-bitch. That ought to teach these silly fuddy-duddy's at the PGA, not to mention this goof-ball Herb Kohler.

Bob Grant| 8.16.10 @ 11:31PM

Yep your accomplice over at the Palin article. The place reeks of paranoia.

I agree the PGA event should not have been played there. It does seem a little mickey mouse-ish. I got the impression, however, the PGA officials performed well warning players throughout the week about the unusual layout. It doesn't surprise me a bit the warning went through one ear and out the other with most golfers. No excuse. These golfers have tons of down time; plenty of time to study the local rules.

Dr. No| 8.16.10 @ 11:55AM

Yes, the PGA screwed up, primarily in not treating tiny patches of sand occupied by spectators outside the ropes as "bunkers" under the rules. They should have been designated waste bunkers.

But you missed another villain in my opinion: course architect Pete Dye. This is a perfect example of what happens when the preposterous excess in his course designs meets a real life Sunday in a major tournament.

gearjammer| 8.16.10 @ 12:06PM

YOU THE MAN !

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 12:21PM

Hey gearjammer, Your old lady sounds great. What was she thinking when she pulled the trigger on hitching up with you?? Sounds like she must wear the pants. Maybe that was it. PS: I'm a 4 so any time. I'll let you tee from the reds strait up (where you belong). Bring your checkbook.

Dai Alanye| 8.16.10 @ 12:26PM

This incident is perfectly in keeping with the overly-legalistic age in which we live, where "the rules" are considered more important than the results. It's the type of age where lawyers get to decide how wars will be fought, where inexperienced duffers get to be President, and where golfers must, apparently, bring along an official rules interpreter in order to safely play the game.

How I long for a more Patton-esque age!

Cris Worth| 8.16.10 @ 12:37PM

It's so good to see Mr. Woods disintegrate into oblivion and all of these young guns beat the hell out him. Tiger is playing like the stoops he faced 10 years ago. No one left to move boulders and cables resulting in quadruple and sextuple bogeys.

Nebraska Sam| 8.16.10 @ 1:05PM

Tiger needs to have another vehicular accident to snap him out of his golf funk say drive a golf cart around in his bare feet and knock over several ball washers that will do it.

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 1:14PM

Tiger needs to mix in a fat chick as a slumpbreaker. Maybe Oprah or Rosie & he is back in form. Works every time.

Bob Grant| 8.16.10 @ 1:52PM

Tiger needs to hook up with Al Gore and go bar hopping. The question is who be the wing man?

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:39PM

Tiger needs to get together w/ Elk and JD, and go out and raise some serious hell--"C'mon, mite, have another brew, and stick that hunk of meat on the bar-bee...we got us some hot Sheila's comin' over to-nite, mite...have a chill! We'll all slay the bloody demons tonight, mite! I'm a bit-of-an Aussie, mite, and I can see you need to lighten-a-bloody-load tonight! Then, you will be on top of your game, Tige!!!"

James Wilson| 8.16.10 @ 12:48PM

This is so quintessentially white.

GW| 8.16.10 @ 4:25PM

Quintessentially WASP.

SteveN| 8.16.10 @ 12:50PM

Unfortunately I have to agree that Dustin Johnson was properly penalized. I say "unfortunately" because he seems like a good guy and a great rising talent and it would be terrible if the combination of this and his final round at Pebble end up being the defining moments of his career.

That being said, this incident - combined with Appleby's 2004 problem - demonstrates the unsuitability of Whistling Straits for tournament golf. What kind of course is it where the players have to play from a bunker that has been trampled by spectators for 4 days? And if you think this incident has been controversial, just imagine the outcry that will result when the same thing happens during the Ryder Cup in 2020. Whistling Straits should be pulled from the rotation. In fact, all Pete Dye courses should be.

gap wedge| 8.16.10 @ 1:11PM

SteveN, you wouldn't pull TPC Ponte Vedra would you? I have only played one Pete Dye course that I didn't hate, TPC Ponte Vedra.

SteveN| 8.16.10 @ 5:14PM

gap wedge,
I'll trust your judgment on Ponte Vedra.

Trojan2| 8.16.10 @ 4:00PM

A lot of good posts here,both for and against the rulres(?) and ruling,but I agree with SteveN.This gimmicky,typical Pete Dye course should never be used for a major or Ryder Cup match.
Any course where every little pock mark must be played as if it were a bunker and the crowd would be impossible to control is ridiculous.
I have played about a dozen true links courses in Scotland and Whistling Straights bears only a superficial resemblence physically and doesn`t play at all like them.
Fie on Pete Dye and Herb Kohler for building this abortion and the PGA for using it.

michigander_sandusky| 8.16.10 @ 9:10PM

I wouldn't play Whistling Straits if it were in my home town and the green fees were

D| 8.16.10 @ 1:24PM

Tiger played OKAY, and was probably responsible for alot of the ratings. If he were not playing, I probably would not have been watching, quite frankly.

GW| 8.16.10 @ 4:27PM

Why? Tiger can't putt or find the fairway. He isn't as long as Johnson or Watson off the tee. Lefty's wedge game is lightyears ahead of Woods's. In fact, I can't name one reason why I would watch Tiger besides his post-swing tirades.

Bob Grant| 8.16.10 @ 11:36PM

Woods Johnson isn't as long as whos?...Who's on first?

jack| 8.16.10 @ 2:21PM

It was trap. Even though it did not look to me like he grounded his club,he must have or he would not have so quickly accepted the ruling. Those are the rules of golf,unless people like you and Obama can change them to fit your needs. Golf has rules that keep it the great game it is. Justin paid the ultimate penalty for not reading the rules sheet. Maybe you would like Obama to change the ruling?

GW| 8.16.10 @ 4:28PM

Or maybe clarify rules or not penalize someone when there is room for interpretation. Johnson did not gain an advantage by grounding his club, and the bunker wasn't clearly defined. But, yeah, lets just let some silly anal-retentative rules freaks determine major championship golf results from now on.

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:42PM

Spot on. Couldn't have said it better.

Mark30339| 8.16.10 @ 2:26PM

I didn't see it live, but the replay sure looks like a bunker to me -- the ball was in sand with a raised lip for Pete's sake. I think Dustin should have asked for clarification on whether it was a hazard, and he should thank his lucky stars that they informed him of the penalty before he signed an incorrect score card.

Hankmeister| 8.16.10 @ 2:49PM

This is what happens when golf goes "liberal" -- it's bureaucratic fascism and tin-plated despotism at its finest hour. The real movers and shakers are penalized because of some pointy-headed nimrods who are more concerned about legal appearances rather than fair-minded commonsense and the celebration of the sport. Surely there was absolutely no attempt to gain any kind advantage by "grounding the golf club" ... ABSOLUTELY NONE! So in reality, where was the infraction? Where was the cheating except for someone's "interpretation" of not only the rule book application but also the interpretation of the geology itself? Maybe the golf association ought to start mailing out topographical maps of golf courses.

BTW, I wasn't aware that anything approaching a bare patch of ground was a "bunker" of any sort if it's located behind the crowd control line - in this case fifteen deep. Once again the merchants of ticky-tack get their 15 seconds of fame and they can self-righteously preen about how they've maintained the ideological purity of the game to the exclusion of all other realities. What a bunch of clowns in the grand scheme of things. Sorry you bureaucratic dudes thumping your rule book, YOU BLEW IT!

D| 8.16.10 @ 3:00PM

So, what do you all think would have happened if the rules officials had ignored the violation, once people (such as the other players and perhaps that all-attentivc media) got a look at the tape?

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:45PM

Would have left well alone.

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 3:21PM

The rule is that you cannot ground your club in a bunker. It was a bunker, a crummy bunker, but a bunker & he clearly grounded it. Get over it. If the clarification & warning had not been stressed prior to the tournament, then maybe you have reason to cry.

scotchieguy| 8.16.10 @ 7:47PM

How technical do you need to get? Suppose some tough guy threw sand in my face, and I spit it out on the ground...under these silly rules, tell me how that is not a bunker?

Bob Grant| 8.17.10 @ 6:56PM

Scotch, you have to put it in the form of the question WWTPT: What Would Todd Palin Think?

MoeBlotz| 8.16.10 @ 3:41PM

Depends on what the meaning of spirit is. Aye,SteveA,no one heard Dustin Johnson piss and moan,did they?

Steve A| 8.16.10 @ 3:53PM

Moe, Nope, he was a class act. I am referring to the crybabies on this thread suggesting everything from rich, white guy conspiracy to self righteous, burecratic rule book thumpers. Personally, I think it was Bush's fault.....

Jeffrey Larsen| 8.16.10 @ 3:56PM

Quin, I agree with your primary point re the "bunker", but it is a stretch to claim he didn't ground the club, and drawing comparisons to out of balance. He approached the ball and set the club down as part of his normal pre-shot routine. Basic point of logic, just because the PGA is wrong on one point, doesn't mean they are wrong on another.

gearjammer| 8.16.10 @ 4:32PM

Hey Steve A, you sound just great. Back in the day I knew a lot of neglected ladies married to golf fanatics. Sure I'll bring my wallet and it'd be fatter when I leave. Of course, right now I am training for the OLYMPICS IN 2012=plan on winning gold in decathlon in 2012. I'll do that before you break 100.

Steve A| 8.17.10 @ 9:56AM

Hey Gear, Shot 73 last time out, thanks. Have teed it up 4 times total this year as I am busy running a business & paying taxes to foot bill for handouts & gimme programs for you & your pals. PS: Nobody wins a decathalon who lets their wife carry their golf bag...

sagman888| 8.16.10 @ 4:46PM

"There is no justice when laws are absolute."

Captain Picard, STNG.

Dave| 8.16.10 @ 6:44PM

You are wrong. We went thru all this in 2004. What disturbs me is that Johnson and Watney said they don't read the local rules. Really? Then what kind of professional are you then? All week long, all the talk was about how many bunkers there were. How could you not have some inkling that I'm playing out of a bunker?

gad-fly| 8.16.10 @ 6:53PM

If we roll forward to the actual playoff, you will remember a whole bunch of discussion between Bubba Watson and the official on the 3rd playoff hole concerning where the water ball drop could occur.

That official went out his way to offer Bubba another site far from the one the golfer had chosen. It seems to me that on the 18th hole of a tournament very important to the PGA that the official would have gone out of his way to point out to Dustin Johnson that he was standing (or not standing) in a bunker. Hey! Dustin was leading the tournament for God's sake!

Todd| 8.16.10 @ 7:11PM

I agree that the PGA blew it. All bunkers should be maintained and/or marked. How can they allow spectators to stomp in the bunkers. Who knows what kind of lie one might find in bunkers that people can walk through and are not afterward raked? A ball goes in a huge, deep footprint: what would the PGA say "Oh, that's too darn bad. Sucks to be you."
How could you distinguish between a bunker and a sand-filled divot? "Sorry, that wasn't a divot that was a bunker. 2 shot penalty for you!"

Harv de Golf| 8.16.10 @ 7:13PM

An interesting ruling and one that could have been avoided in a number of ways - read and know the rules (golfer AND caddy), ask for help from the rules official, or don't allow spectators to stand in bunkers that qualify to be so under USGA rules.
But here is a potential dilemma for 2012 at The Ocean Course at Kiawah. I played there in May and the starter, as part of his pre-round briefing, told us that ALL sand areas are considered waste areas and we could ground our club. I specifically asked about greenside bunkers and the starter reiterated what he just told us emphasizing the "ALL sand areas are waste areas." Once onto the course we realized why - the sand waste areas were massive. But it was also easy to identify the greenside bunkers and, to me, they seemed to be distinctively different than the other waste areas. So what will the PGA do in 2012? If the rule remains the same, they won't have the possibility of a controversy like what happened at Whistling Straits. But I'd contend that the greenside bunkers should be played as hazards, and if so the PGA would have to find a way to identify and mark the difference. That's not hard to do - they can use paint, or create maps. What the PGA will be able to count on, however, is that every player will read the rules.

Mike Richardson| 8.16.10 @ 8:11PM

Bunker, don't ground your club, if for 1 second or 1 minute, DON'T GROUND YOUR CLUB!

Lloyd Dobbs| 8.16.10 @ 10:27PM

Thank you for this article with which I am in complete agreement. I watched the play, thought that this COULD NOT be a Bunker and if it were
it was unlike ANY bunker I have ever seen;
and am of the opinion that Dustin Johnson was
treated wrongly. SCREWED!

Cpm| 8.16.10 @ 10:47PM

I would have asked who was responsible for the atrocious groundskeeping that a bare patch of dirt is considered a bunker. I would have politely told them to take their ruling and shove it, and I would have walked out. On network TV

Morgan| 8.17.10 @ 12:10AM

If we went back thru the 28 hours of golf that they showed on the various channels, we will find an infraction by other golfers. Now would be then have to DQ them for signing an incorrect card.
The PGA blew it by not specifically identifying "the bunkers", if it were at all possible to identify all bunkers on that course. Totally unfair ruling.

J.P. Travis| 8.17.10 @ 11:16AM

C'mon, Mr. Hillyer, don't write stuff that isn't true. It's a waste of your time and mine. After reading your column I was outraged, but then I watched the video. It was clearly a bunker in direct contradiction to what you wrote.

skip| 8.17.10 @ 11:45AM

Golf is the premiere sport. It is all on the golfer. You can't blame a loss on a missed free throw, dropped pass, grooved fastball, fluke bounce, or poor officiating. Golf is king. Of all the golfers out there, I don't actively root against any of them (about 150 per tournament) with two exceptions: Douchio Garcia and Colin Montdoucherie. Ian Poofter is close to making it three. As the back nine played out Sunday, and Dustin Johnson shot 3 under on holes 13 through 17, I found myself rooting against him. Low riding hip hugging slacks are fantastic on women only. Wide white belts are tacky. Soul patches are ridiculous. I was distracted by every shot he took because of some insipid design on the back of his shirt. I don't know the sponsor on the shirt, but I will, they will never get my business, and I will actively badmouth that company every chance I get at parties, on courses, etc. The way he presented himself, through attire, rubbed me wrong. This was before he showed his mental acuity. All he had to do was read the local rules of the golf course where he was attempting to win the PGA championship.

Bob Grant| 8.17.10 @ 4:46PM

How'd you like David Feherty's immediate reaction? True to form he sided with the player instead of taking a step back and being objective, which is SUPPOSED TO BE HIS FRIGGIN JOB! He's just a younger version of Gary McCord.

Man-O-man, those infomercials on Saturday and Sunday afternoons are looking more and more interesting!

GLOG| 8.17.10 @ 4:38PM

could someone obtain the exact GPS coordinates of the shot site so we can Google Earth the location. The satelite image would be from prior to the tournament. Zoom in and see if the location appears to have been a prepared bunker. This was my first reaction upon hearing that there was a question about grounding in a hazard. What did the site look like prior to the tournament and the crowds?

If you look at the image as it appears in Google Earth, the resolution gets shaky the farther you zoom in. But, there are lots of bunkers and they appear to be very well defined, even with the poor resolution. Was he in one of these well defined areas?

I think the weight of proof was on the shoulders of the PGA. Prove first and foremost the site was a bunker. If someone can't prove it, then the balance of the evidence goes with Johnson. I watched live and I don't recall a specific look at a map to assess this particular spot on the course. I wish Johnson had called them on it.

Bob Grant| 8.17.10 @ 4:59PM

Let's be realistic about this. I'm going to give the PGA the benefit of the doubt.

Clearly if the bunker was a questionable hazard, the PGA would have given the player the benefit of the doubt. Unless, of course, the PGA has the worst PR department in the world.

There is no question he grounded his club.

Johnson did not challenge the ruling to any degree.

The player screwed up by not reading up on the local rules. The caddy was also to blame.

This was a $100, 000 life lesson.

Don't bitch at the Fannie May/Freddy Mac mortgage holders who did not understand their mortgages then turn around to defend this player for making the same error.

R E Iden | 8.17.10 @ 6:05PM

As soon as the PGA made its ruling on Sunday, disqualifying Johnson, I turned off the TV and and picked up a book. There was no way I was going to watch the playoff after those PGA idiots made their decision.

Jeff| 8.19.10 @ 10:37AM

You people are so ignorant about the rules of golf. It's very frustrating to read comments from people who have no idea what they are talking about. The PGA let the players know in advance when they distributed the rules sheet. Period. Look up a photo of Dustin Johnson hitting out of this bunker. It is clearly a bunker, no question about it. Grow up.

SFBurke| 8.19.10 @ 11:42AM

It doesn't matter if he "barely" grounded his club. You can't ground a club or even hit a grain of sand on your backswing in a bunker. The local rules were clearly posted and Johnson should have read them. Bad break, "rub of the green."

Dwight| 8.23.10 @ 9:20PM

I swear the only thing published by this website endless bitching. Case in point, this elementary article.