Good riddance.
The USGA have moved to scrap one of the most unpopular rules in golf: rules violations pointed out by callers who have watched it on television.
From January 1st, 2018, tournament officials will no longer consider call-ins as part of the process of making rules decisions. That’s exactly how it should be, in fairness.
Thomas Pagel, USGA senior director of rules, said:
“The message we’re putting out to fans is, What you’ve seen, we’ve seen. Have confidence in us running the event. We want you to be a fan. Enjoy watching the world’s best players. Let the rules be handled inside the ropes between the players and officials.”
Beginning Jan. 1, 2018, tournament officials will no longer field or consider your call-ins as part of rules decisions. https://t.co/oe3GmXzle5
— GOLF.com (@GOLF_com) December 11, 2017
The USGA and R&A made a joint announcement on Monday following recommendations from a working group led by the governing bodies and consisting of the PGA Tour, LPGA Tour, PGA European Tour, Ladies European Tour and the PGA of America.
Suffice to say, this change will be a popular one. There was outrage earlier in the year when Lexi Thompson was hit with a four-stroke penalty when a TV viewer phoned in after spotting a rules infraction. Thompson incurred a two-stroke penalty for incorrectly marking her ball, with an additional two-shot penalty for therefore signing an incorrect scorecard.
It cost Thompson a major championship and attracted widespread condemnation from several figures in the golfing community, who called for a change to the rules. The fact that armchair golf fans could conceivably shape the outcome of a professional event was ludicrous, but luckily that power has been taken away from them.
WATCH: Liverpool BOTTLED the title race 🤬 | Who will win the Premier League?
