Imagine you are on the PGA Tour and looking for your first ever victory. You have just tied one of the best golfers, Jim Furyk, on the 18th hole and are heading to a playoff. This is the position that Brian Davis was in last weekend at the Verizon Heritage tournament in Hilton Head, South Carolina. He was in prime position to win his first tournament on the tour, but what happened next was almost unbelievable.
On the playoff hole, Davis hit a 7-iron that hit off the side of the green and bounced into some rough that had grass, twigs, and reeds. His next shot would be difficult. As Davis took his backswing, he barely hit a loose reed with his club...a violation of rule 13.4c, which states: The player must not "Touch or move a loose impediment lying in or touching the hazard." The thing is, no one noticed that he had hit the reed but him. Immediately, he called over a rules official and told him that he thought he had hit something on his backswing. After reviewing the tape, it was ruled he did indeed commit a violation, and was penalized two strokes. Davis then conceded to Furyk who subsequently won the tournament and over one million dollars. Davis earned just over $600,000 for 2nd place. His honestly cost him, not only his first PGA win, but over $400,000.
Golf has a certain etiquette to it that the players abide by. It's a gentlemanly game that players are supposed to police themselves and be honest when committing a penalty, if they are aware of it. This would never happen in a team sport, nor should it. Athletes in team sports are brought up completely different. With that said, I'm not sure how many golfers would have admitted this same mistake with so much on the line. This is a rule that, if you and I were out on the golf course, we'd more than likely ignore.
The question is, would you do the same thing knowing it would cost you a ton of money and your first (and maybe only) pro win? Brian Davis did and he deserves to be applauded (with a polite golf clap, of course).
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