The post The country’s most expensive course inspired our best-read travel story of 2023 appeared first on Golf.

The post The country’s most expensive course inspired our best-read travel story of 2023 appeared first on Golf.

This past year in golf was awash in it. Eight-figure first-place prizes. Nine-figure player contracts.

The sums were astounding, and what they said about the game became a source of some dispute. Depending on your view, the elevated purses and extravagant signings either signaled that professional golfers were a) wildly overpaid or b) finally getting what they deserved. Whatever the case, the sheer amount of moolah was enough to warp perspectives.

“Generational wealth is there to be had,” LIV CEO Greg Norman enthused, describing the allure of the Saudi-backed circuit. As if the financial welfare of, say, Jon Rahm’s grandkids might otherwise be in doubt.

And it wasn’t just the pros.

Big money flooded the recreational game, too. Everywhere you turned, it seemed a lavish new club was enrolling well-heeled members. In New Jersey, baseball star Mike Trout announced that he was building a course that he’d named in his own honor. In Florida, a private redoubt opened with a Norman-design layout. The initiation dues? $1 million.

All around the country, high-end resorts and daily-fee courses were packed. Some raised rates. In April, Pebble Beach bumped its greens fees to $625. At TPC Sawgrass, peek dynamic pricing pushed the cost of a round above $800.

All of which made headlines. But on GOLF.com, no story drew more clicks than a post about the most expensive greens fee of them all. 

Ever since it opened, in 1989, Shadow Creek Golf Course, in North Las Vegas, had been a place apart. Designed by Tom Fazio, and bankrolled by casino magnate Steve Wynn at a reported cost of roughly $60 million, the impeccably kept layout existed for years as a Shangri-La reserved for the highest of high-rollers. In 2000, though, MGM Resorts International took over from Wynn and flung the gates open, sort of. Anyone could now play Shadow Creek — provided they were staying at designated MGM property and were willing to shell out $500.

What seemed expensive then comes off as chicken feed today.

In more recent years, as Shadow Creek has enjoyed growing nationally televised exposure as the host of a series of professional events (starting with The Match: Tiger vs. Phil, followed by the PGA Tour’s CJ Cup and the Bank of Hope LPGA Match-Play event), its rates have grown as well. In 2019, $500 became $600, which swelled to $1,000 in 2021. 

If you think that what goes up must eventually come down, you might be right. But 2023 was not the year for that. Not at Shadow Creek. This past fall, MGM raised rates again. To $1,250. Caddie not included. Though you do get a limo ride to and from the course.

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The post Short-game guru’s system to improve distance control — and stop 3-putting appeared first on Golf.

The post Short-game guru’s system to improve distance control — and stop 3-putting appeared first on Golf.

Three-putting is a maddening mistake. It turns potential birdies into bogeys, and those bogeys into “others.” If it’s taking you three whacks to get the ball in the hole on the greens, you have little chance to score well.

It’s been shown that the best way to limit three-putts is by improving your distance control. Starting your putts on the correct line is nice, but dispersion patterns are typically larger front-to-back than they are left-to-right. With that in mind, it merits a healthy amount of work dialing in your touch.

Training on the greens isn’t mindless work. Like every other aspect of your game, you need to have a plan when heading out for practice. Luckily for you, we have a few drills that you can use to dial in your speed, courtesy of short-game guru Dave Pelz. Check it out below from the November 1990 issue of GOLF Magazine.

Dave Pelz’ putting drills

Think back to the first time you stood on a putting green. Whether you were a child or fully grown, you probably held the putter awkwardly as you stood over the ball, knowing you wanted to send it toward the hole but not really knowing how to go about it. So on your first attempt, you probably did one of two things: Either you hit the ball no more than half the distance to the hole or you knocked it well past, maybe even off the green. 

The point is, feel for distance is not born but learned. And you can begin learning and perfecting it at any point, even if you’ve not been a good putter up till now. 

The best way I’ve found of developing a feel for distance is through drills that you practice on the putting green. Work on these drills and your feel for putting distance will improve very quickly. 

Putt blindfolded

Most players with poor distance control on the greens think too much about technique, not enough about touch. They have so many tips floating around in their heads that they can’t feel the proper action and ingrain a good motion into their muscle memory. I’m not saying you shouldn’t rely on keys. But think of only one before you start the stroke, then let feel take over. 

One way to clear your head of extraneous keys while learning to judge distance on the green is by practicing putts of different lengths while blindfolded. From a number of distances, place a few balls on the green, glance at the hole then close your eyes or tie on a blindfold. Try to hole the putts. You’ll sense if your body is moving, your grip pressure is comfortable and your hands are working as a unit throughout the stroke. 

Work on this a few times and you’ll return to the course thinking only about feel — not mechanics. 

Lag-putt drill

This drill will help you on long putts when you want to minimize the worry of reading the line and concentrate on the correct speed. 

Putt three balls from 40, then 60, then 50 feet away from the hole. You want to stop the balls four, then six, then five feet away, respectively. Repeat the sequence twice more so you’ve putted 27 balls in all. 

Finally, putt three balls from 60 feet away. If all three finish within six feet of the hole, you’re finished. If any one is more than six feet away, putt the final three again until they’re all within the six-foot range. 

This drill will help turn your three-putts into two-putts — with the occasional long one finding the hole. 

20-foot drill

If you were to chart your putts in a single round, you’d probably find that many of your first attempts are from roughly 20 feet away. So it makes sense to feel confident over 20-footers. Here’s a drill to help. Mark two spots, 20 feet from opposite sides of the hole. From the first spot, putt in groups of three balls until you can stop them all within one putter-length of the back of the cup, without leaving any short. Having done that, go to the mark on the other side of the hole and repeat the drill. Keep putting this way for 15 minutes or until you can stop 10 in a row.

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The post Vanessa Hudgens took a newlywed golf trip — and rocked this must-have sun hat appeared first on Golf.

The post Vanessa Hudgens took a newlywed golf trip — and rocked this must-have sun hat appeared first on Golf.

Just married on Dec. 2, newlywed couple Cole Tucker and Vanessa Hudgens (High School Musical, anyone?) recently hit the course for a quiet getaway to celebrate their marriage. The power couple often gets away to the course, seeming to find solace from the bustling world on the fairways and greens, much like we all do. As the saying goes, “Stars — they’re just like us.”

Hudgens posted the image featured above yesterday on her Instagram. With the ocean waves rolling and palm trees rustling, this is a golf scene we’d all love to transport to this winter.

While on the golf getaway, Hudgens rocked a swanky oversized bucket hat, which we absolutely adore. You can check it out below.

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The post Vanessa Hudgens took a newlywed golf trip — and rocked this must-have sun hat appeared first on Golf.

The post How to get the perfect ‘splash’ out of the bunker every time appeared first on Golf.

The post How to get the perfect ‘splash’ out of the bunker every time appeared first on Golf.

While not terrible advice, most recreational players take it too literally and focus their attention on — or even stare at — only an area behind the ball and forget that the area underneath and past the ball is just as important. The result? The club bottoms out too early, resulting in either a fat shot or, worse yet, a bladed one the sails the green. 

The correct way to develop consistency and distance control from a greenside bunker is to carve out a “splash” of sand that begins and exits in equal amounts on both sides of the ball. To get a feel for it, try my “Superman X-ray vision” shot. 

X-ray vision shot

Tee a ball in the sand until it sits nicely on top of the bunker’s surface. Set up like normal, then hit the shot with your attention focused on cutting the tee in half. The secret: Look through the ball to the tee underneath as you swing.

By doing so, you’ll naturally enter the sand behind the ball, go under it and exit just after it, resulting in a predictable, consistent splash. The length of this splash will vary depending on swing speed, the bounce on your wedge, attack angle and sand texture. Regardless, the important part is the symmetry of the entry and exit. 

It’s a bird! It’s a plane! It’s a super save! 

Jeff Warne is a GOLF Top 100 Teacher and is the director of golf at The Bridge in Bridgehampton, N.Y.

The post How to get the perfect ‘splash’ out of the bunker every time appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘A number of red flags’: Star Ryder Cup rookie explains why he rejected LIV’s advances appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘A number of red flags’: Star Ryder Cup rookie explains why he rejected LIV’s advances appeared first on Golf.

But the beginning of Aberg’s story with LIV dates back to the spring of 2022, when while still a college golfer he reportedly turned down a multi-million offer from the upstart, Saudi-financed golf league. Shortly thereafter, Aberg completed a phenomenal college season by earning Ben Hogan Award honors as the Player of the Year.

By September 2022, Aberg was No. 1 in the world amateur rankings. Flash forward to September 2023, and Aberg claimed his first pro win at the DP World Tour’s Omega European Masters, before holding the 54-hole lead at the BMW PGA Championship.

News

In between those starts, Luke Donald selected him as a captain’s pick for the European Ryder Cup team, which was a surprise to many American fans who didn’t know him yet. That would change with his impressive performance in the European team’s win at Marco Simone later in the month.

Following the Ryder Cup, Aberg headed back to the PGA Tour, where he lost in a playoff at the Sanderson Farms Championship before capturing his first-career Tour victory at the RSM Classic in November.

With millions made on the course in a single year, it’s clear that Aberg’s decision to turn down LIV in 2022 was a solid one, but at the time his future wasn’t as certain.

But in a recent appearance on the Eurosport podcast with Espen Blaker, Aberg explained why he turned down LIV before he’d made a name for himself.

In a translation of the interview reported by several outlets including Golf Digest, Aberg said, “There were a number of red flags, which is not good. We realized that I could potentially burn a lot of bridges, and I wasn’t interested in that. When I look back, I am very confident in my decision. I will never chase money; what I do is compete. I did the right thing.”

“I want to play against the best because I am a competitive person and like to compete against the best players,” Aberg continued, “When I look at the PGA Tour and the competitions there, there is so much history around all the competitions. And that’s what I like, that’s what I go for. But then you have to respect everyone’s decisions.”

With his PGA Tour card locked up for years to come and a win already on his resume, Aberg’s outlook heading into 2024 is as bright as they come.

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The post Brooks Koepka’s LIV major championship triumph turned golf on its head appeared first on Golf.

The post Brooks Koepka’s LIV major championship triumph turned golf on its head appeared first on Golf.

Biggest Golf Moments of 2023 … No. 15: Viktor Hovland’s arrival | No. 14: Fowler, Day back in the winner’s circle | No. 13: Brian Harman’s Open rout | No. 12: The Michael Block Party | No. 11: Wyndham Clark’s breakout | No. 10: Lilia Vu’s rise | No. 9: LIV Golf’s OWGR snub | No. 8: The players regain control | No. 7: Ciganda’s Spanish Solheim triumph | No. 6: Tiger Woods’ 2023 return

***

Biggest Golf Moments of 2023 No. 5: Brooks Koepka’s PGA Championship triumph

On June 6, the day golf flipped on its head, there remained one prevailing question.

Why now?

At that point, the PGA Tour had been mired in an existential battle with LIV Golf for the better part of a year, and things had not progressed very far from Tour commissioner Jay Monahan’s first proclamation of war. There had been no hint that the waters were warming; no sign that golf’s cold war could end soon. There had nary been a peep from the powers that be on both sides, who continued to rail against one another — both publicly and privately — right up until the landmark “framework agreement” was signed.

It’s possible we’ll never know what pushed Monahan over the edge and into negotiations with Yasir Al-Rumayyan, his counterpart at the Saudi Public Investment Fund. But it’s also possible the answer has been sitting in front of us the whole time. His name is Brooks Koepka.

After all, it was in late May, just days before the Framework Agreement was signed, that Koepka stunned the golf world at the PGA Championship. After a wild week and a Sunday battle with Viktor Hovland, Koepka emerged victorious at Oak Hill, winning his fifth major — the first for a LIV competitor.

The rift in golf had been obvious for some time, but Koepka’s victory solidified it. The perception of LIV as a place where old golfers went to die was quickly thrown out the window. The upstarts were here, and they were a force to be reckoned with. Hell, if another LIV competitor or two won a major, the upstarts might even take over the U.S. Ryder Cup team for kicks.

We’ll never know how Koepka’s victory changed the perception of his employers within the sport, but we do know what came after: an agreement that pushed golf towards peace. And as for Brooks himself? Well, the benefits were even more prodigious.

Yes, the years preceding Koepka’s week in Rochester were unkind both physically and mentally. He’d dealt with a variety of knee issues, undergoing surgeries and grueling rehabs only to produce excruciating (and lackluster) performances at golf’s majors. For the first time in the life of one of the most physically dominant stars of this era, some began to wonder if his star was fading.

Koepka’s departure to LIV Golf appeared to solidify this belief. At a time in which has-beens were flooding into the league for one last payday, Koepka was among the biggest to go. His decision appeared to foretell the end of his story — a slow but steady descent into golfing irrelevance.

But then he arrived at Smash GC and a funny thing happened: his body recovered. For the first time in years, he was able to swing without pain. He poured on early season wins at LIV events and strung together a brilliant — but ultimately unsuccessful — week at the Masters.

He arrived in Rochester his old self: swaggering, boisterous, and more than a little cocky. Asked if he’d like to share what he learned from his Masters disappointment at an early week press availability, Koepka revealed a competitor’s pugnaciousness.

“Not really, no,” he said, deadpan. “I’ll be honest. Yeah, I’ll keep that to myself.”

But when play began, there was no hiding his ferocity. Koepka dominated throughout most of play, riding a steady glide up the leaderboard in fierce conditions without so much as a moment’s hesitation. After an early flurry of scoring on Sunday morning threatened to displace him from the top of the leaderboard, Koepka responded with three birdies in his first four holes to put a stranglehold on the lead. With a relentless Viktor Hovland nipping at his heels all the way down the back nine, he never blinked.

He closed out a two-shot victory on the 18th hole, and his scowl folded into a grin. Brooks was back in the winner’s circle again.

He laughed among friends as he made the long walk from the 18th green back to the scorer’s tent, basking in the glow of a landscape-changing major championship. There would be time to sort out the big details of what the day meant later, but as he stood near the clubhouse, the big picture was right beneath the mile-wide smile, where Koepka’s hand extended to show the day’s most important development — his new number of major championships.

Five.

The post Brooks Koepka’s LIV major championship triumph turned golf on its head appeared first on Golf.

The post The best photos our staff snapped in 2023 — and the stories behind them appeared first on Golf.

The post The best photos our staff snapped in 2023 — and the stories behind them appeared first on Golf.

Sean Zak: I raised my hand up high to catch this snap from the center of Team Europe’s victory party. Rory is sipping a Peroni. Rahm is talking about tequila he has in the hotel. Shane Lowry is wearing the Irish flag like a cape. Vik Hovland is ready to do the same with Norway’s flag. What’s funny about this moment is that the team is stuck waiting. There’s so much pent-up energy around the Ryder Cup, building for months and months. And then in a flurry of three days it’s over and one team gets to throw an absolute rager. But to honor TV contracts, the players are stuck waiting for a good 20 minutes before being introduced to the cameras. Such a funny 20 minutes. And fun to stand there in the center of it all. 

Alan Bastable: Of all the places I might have expected the game to take me in 2023, a Senate hearing room was not one of them. But that’s where I found myself on July 11 — parked at the cramped press table in SH 216 at the U.S. Capitol. There is nothing remarkable about this photograph, but it symbolizes the mind-boggling upheaval men’s professional golf has experienced over the past couple of years. One moment we were tittering at the notion of a Greg Norman-led league taking on the PGA Tour; the next we were observing U.S. senators grill PGA Tour brass about partnering with Saudi Arabian investors. What does 2024 have in store?!

James Colgan: It was Friday morning at my very first Open Championship, and the shower was once again hot enough to melt my skin. You see, dear reader, the differences between America and England are few, but the sanctity of one’s bathing remains one area in which the Brits lag several centuries behind. All week long at our ancient rental house in Hoylake, the GOLF staff wedged into the two-foot by two-foot glass-paneled box in the upstairs bathroom desiring only a warm shower. And all week long, the GOLF staff’s shower temperatures alternated between cold-plunge frigidity and second-degree burns. 

That helps to explain the curls flowing off my head in the photo below from Open Championship Friday, seated beneath the brilliant yellow leaderboard on the 18th hole at Royal Liverpool as the final groups rolled through. The shower had not allowed ample time for shampooing (or, for that matter, styling) at the Open. Only a few brief moments of misery each morning.

That’s okay, though. I’ll always remember that shower, that rental house, and that glorious Friday golden hour at the Open in one large swath of nostalgia. In golf as in travel, the memories are only as good as the stories.

Nick Dimengo: As someone who still pinches himself for actually having this job, I’m pretty damn lucky to tee it up at a few incredible courses — and Chambers Bay takes the cake. Set on a Pacific Ocean sound, it offers stunning views of sunsets and mountains, while also providing a warm breeze coming off the water during the spring and summer months. This picture (looking back toward the tee box on No. 12, “The Narrows”) encapsulates everything right about Chambers, and highlights both its beauty and its difficult terrain. The fact that I get to call a U.S. Open site my “home course” is surreal, and this photo makes me reminisce about an incredible first year on the job.

Jack Hirsh: This year I was fortunate enough to be offered the opportunity to coach my former high school golf team. Below, I’m pictured with our two district qualifiers, Thomas and Carson, who will be our captains for the next two seasons. I picked this photo because it’s a great symbol of where I’ve been (I’m wearing my 8-year-old senior sweatshirt that still fits!), and where the team and I are headed.

Josh Sens: On a blustery day in Monterey, during a round of preview play before the U.S. Women’s Open at Pebble Beach, I got paired with USGA honcho Mike Whan (pictured below, on Pebble’s 7th hole), an amiable guy with a nicely on-plane swing and a decent putting stroke. Over the course of 18 holes, we talked about rules and rollbacks and his role in trying to remove some of the generational starch from his organization’s culture. We also played a match, which I, with my ugly, cross-the-line, hold-on hacker’s move, won 5 and 3. I’m not saying I lost all respect for Whan. But it wasn’t a proud moment for the guardians of the game, no matter how good his move looks here.

Tim Reilly: I’m bending the rules a bit. This is a photo taken on my phone without my knowledge. In October, I was fortunate enough to walk out and play the Old Course. A cold, rainy morning scared away enough softies to get my No. 43 queue spot out by 11 a.m. A member hosting his two son-in-laws happened to have an opening. We connected at the front desk, and the elderly Englishman remarked, “We must be mad.” 

After a few holes of needling their new American friend, they realized I could take anything they threw my way…and give it back. I was welcomed, for a day, as an extended member of their family. 

After the round, I was invited to join my new lads for a pint. When I stepped away for a bathroom break, the group took my phone to capture a few selfies. It was a reminder of a memorable day at a course, and with a group I won’t soon forget. It was all a single walk-on the Old Course could ask for — and more.

Ryan Barath: I used to think that anyone who choose to quote the Dr. Seuss classic “Oh the Places You’ll Go” during an event like a graduation was a bit of a cop-out, but the older I get, the more I realize just how much it encapsulates life. 

The game has taken me many places in 2023, and this picture on the Swilcan Bridge in St. Andrews with my wife Dana means a lot more that just the experience of being able to play the famous Old Course. (Like my colleague Tim, I’m bending the rules a bit since someone else technically snapped the photo.) 

This picture not only represents many years of wanting and hoping to see this special place with my own two eyes, but also huge the amount of love and support has given to me through the years. Even those she didn’t choose to play in the nearly 30 mph winds that day (smart on her part) we played one of the other courses later in the week and enjoyed the putting course, too. It was a shared experience we’ll never forget.

Jessica Marksbury: This photo is admittedly not super-spectacular — your basic course photo! — but for me it evokes a memory of my favorite getaway of the year. The destination? Terranea, a glorious cliff-top resort in Southern California. I loved everything about it: the setting, the dining, the accommodations, all top-notch. But I was really struck by the golf. The Links at Terranea, a nine-hole on-site track that opened in 2009, was so pleasant: walkable and quick to play, leaving ample time to enjoy everything else the resort has to offer. These days, I love when golf is a part of my itinerary rather than the be-all, end-all objective of the day. Terranea ticks all those boxes, and I can’t wait to go back.

Dylan Dethier: This spring me and our visual whiz Darren Riehl made some videos at the Masters that involved a photo shoot around various intriguing corners of Augusta National — including its phone banks. The old-school phones are actually pretty cool. You can call someone from there — no charge — and say, “Hey, I’m at the Masters, and I’m thinking of you!” I like that. But I like this picture (below, middle) because Darren, who actually called his wife, looks like a dork. Flanking Darren are a couple more snaps where I look like one, too. Good times!

Nick Piastowski: Yep, that’s me on the left. And Susan Fiandach on the right. And who’s Susan Fiandach? No, she’s no pro. But she did play a part in one of the more, shall we say, “unconventional” golf stories I’ve written. Ahead of this year’s PGA Championship, I had learned that the ghost of Buffalo Bill had been seen at Oak Hill, the host course. So I started to talk to folks. The Oak Hill club historian. Curators at the two Buffalo Bill museums. Players. And Fiandach, a psychic medium at the Purple Door Soul Source, five miles from Oak Hill, in Rochester, N.Y. I visited her office. She told me the sightings were real. She gave me advice on how to talk to ghosts. On my way out, we snapped a photo together. Then, a day later, in an attempt to contact the long-deceased legend, I put her teachings to work. 

The post The best photos our staff snapped in 2023 — and the stories behind them appeared first on Golf.

The post 14 biggest rules controversies, mishaps and blunders of 2023 appeared first on Golf.

The post 14 biggest rules controversies, mishaps and blunders of 2023 appeared first on Golf.

Not so on the PGA and LPGA Tours, or their feeding circuits. While pros have a much better grasp of the rules than your average hacker, they sometimes are guilty of forgetting them. Other times they make a blunder under pressure, while in more controversial instances, they don’t think they’ve violated the rules at all.

News

This past season was no different, with high-profile rules incidents breaking out involving some of the biggest legends in the modern game, including Rory McIlroy, Phil Mickelson, Brooks Koepka and Lydia Ko, to name just a few.

For your reading pleasure, we compiled 14 of the biggest rules controversies from 2023 all in one place. Scroll below to see the most impactful rules flaps of the year.

Biggest golf rules incidents of 2023

Matthew Fitzpatrick calls penalty on Collin Morikawa at Hero

After Saturday’s third round at the 2023 Hero World Challenge, two-time major champion Collin Morikawa was struck with a two-shot penalty for violating Model Local Rule G-11. The rules restricts usage of green-reading materials by pros.

Rules

It turns out Morikawa and his caddie had tested slopes on the practice putting green with a level, which is legal. But either Morikawa or his caddie wrote the results down in his green book. When he referenced those stats on the 4th green, he was in violation of the rule.

In a strange twist, fellow pro Matthew Fitzpatrick had texted Tour rules official Stephen Cox on Saturday night to ask about the rule. When pressed for more info, he revealed Morikawa’s error and the penalty was assessed.

Lydia Ko hit with 7-shot penalty after rules blunder

In July at the LPGA’s Dana Open, star Lydia Ko was hit with a massive penalty that sent her plummeting down the leaderboard. And some stormy weather was partly to blame.

Rules

In Saturday’s third round, players were allowed to lift, clean and place their balls on every hole after rain soaked the course. But for Sunday’s final round, the rule changed. For the final day of competition, players could only lift, clean and place their balls on holes 1 and 10.

Here’s where Ko comes in. The former World No. 1 did not realize the rules had been changed for Sunday, and she proceeded to lift, clean and place her balls on holes 3, 7, 9 and 11. Once she had picked up her ball on 11, Ko began to realize her mistake and called in a rules official.

After conferring, she was assessed two-stroke penalties on 3,7 and 9 for violating Rule 14.7a (lifting her ball and not returning it to its original spot) and a one-stroke penalty on 11 because she returned her ball to its original spot (Rule 9.4b.). In all, Ko was hit with seven penalty strokes.

Ko commented on the blunder on Instagram soon after, writing, “Note to self, read the preferred lies memo CAREFULLY next time realizing on the 11th hole that I had played the ball ‘up’ on holes that wasn’t meant to be, so giving myself an accumulated 7 stroke penalty was not the way I had envisioned the week to end. It’s frustrating, but you live and learn.”

Rory McIlroy gets away with incorrect drop at U.S. Open

You can call this rules controversy the penalty-that-never-was. In the final round of the U.S. Open at LACC, Rory McIlroy’s approach shot plugged deep into fescue covering the steep bank of a greenside bunker. After conferring with a rules official, it was determined McIlroy’s ball was plugged in the ground, which meant he was allowed to take a free drop.

Rules

This is where things got weird. The rules official then told McIlroy where the nearest point of relief was, and the four-time major winner made his free drop in accordance with the rules. The problem is that the official had misidentified the nearest point of relief.

After the round, the USGA acknowledged the error but determined that because McIlroy’s ball was dropped within 18 inches of the correct spot and because he earned no advantage from the incorrect placement, no penalty would be awarded.

Brooks Koepka’s caddie advice controversy at Masters

Brooks Koepka nearly won this year’s Masters, eventually surrendering the lead to Jon Rahm (before winning the next major at the PGA). But Koepka’s quest for the green jacket was nearly hampered on Saturday.

News

Playing alongside Gary Woodland in the third round, Koepka hit a 5-iron approach shot into the par-5 15th. After hitting, video caught Koepka’s caddie Ricky Elliott say something to Woodland’s caddie. Some observers claimed Elliott had said “five,” or, in other words, had given club advice to an opponent’s caddie, a clear violation of Rule 10-2a.

The penalty for that infraction would have been two strokes, but after tournament officials questioned all people involved in the incident, they chose not to charge Koepka any strokes. Masters officials released an explanation shortly thereafter, writing, “All involved were adamant that no advice was given or requested. Consequently, the Committee determined there was no breach of the Rules.”

Phil Mickelson nearly makes incorrect drop at PGA

The 2023 PGA Championship at Oak Hill was full of bizarre rules incidents, including a controversy involving one of the most high-profile figures in the game: Phil Mickelson.

On the 6th hole during the second round, Mickelson flew his drive into a swampy area surrounded by red stakes. After deciding to take an unplayable, he double-checked with playing partner Rickie Fowler on the rule (“Two club-lengths on red, correct?”) and began the process of making his drop.

At that moment, a rules official came over and stopped Phil, letting him know that he was about to make an incorrect drop. A debate between Mickelson and the official ensued, and the six-time major winner was adamant he was right.

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But it turns out, unbeknownst to Mickelson, the rule regarding back-of-line relief had changed on January 1, 2023. As of the new year, rules 14.3b, 16.1c(2), and 17.1d(2) were altered to read like this: “the player must drop the ball on the line and the ball must come to rest within one club length in any direction of where it first touched the line.”

After the rules official confirmed he was right by radioing another official, he convinced Mickelson of his error. Mickelson was then allowed to take his drop following the new rules, and no additional penalty was assessed.

Cameron Young forgets to move ball mark back at PGA

Pro Cameron Young makes the list for an error that is not entirely uncommon in pro events, but a mistake that can be accurately described as an unforced error.

Rules

On Friday at Oak Hill, Young hit his first putt on the 16th hole to about two feet. With Young’s ball in the line of his playing partner Tommy Fleetwood’s putt, Fleetwood asked Young to move his mark, which he did, one putterhead to the right.

But after Fleetwood and Hideki Matsuyama putted out, Young went ahead and drained his two-footer without moving his ball back, a violation of rule 15.3c. Several holes later, Young was alerted to his error and assessed a two-shot penalty.

Lee Hodges waits too long for ball to drop at PGA

This one hurts. Again at the PGA Championship, lesser-known pro Lee Hodges went from jubilation to depression in a matter of moments.

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On Saturday during the third round, Hodges rolled a 16-foot putt on Oak Hill’s 17th green and watched as it inexplicably came to rest on the edge of the cup. Hodges and playing partner Jordan Spieth clearly believed the ball would eventually drop into the hole, so they waited.

After 34 seconds, Hodges’ ball did just that. The problem is, he had waited too long. According to the rules, players are allowed to take a reasonable amount of time reach their balls in a situation like this, and then they’re allowed to wait an additional 10 seconds for the ball to drop. Since Hodges waited far longer than 10 seconds, he was later assessed a one-stroke penalty, changing his score from a par to a bogey.

Carlota Ciganda gets slow-play penalty, then DQ for incorrect scorecard

This one is in the running for the weirdest duel rules infraction of the year, and it features LPGA pro Carlota Ciganda and another major championship.

During the second round of the Evian Championship, Ciganda’s group was issued a slow-play warning on the 7th hole. When Ciganda then took too long to hit a shot on the 9th, she was hit with a two-stroke penalty for slow play.

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After the round, Ciganda appealed the ruling with tournament officials, but they stayed firm that she had committed a violation. Refusing to accept their decision, Ciganda turned in her scorecard without adding the two-stroke penalty. As a result, she was disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard.

Shad Tuten loses PGA Tour card after controversial ruling

Shad Tuten will not soon forget a rules mishap at the Korn Ferry Tour Championship that cost him dearly in his pro golf career.

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When Tuten wrapped up his final round at the event, he was sitting in 30th place. Why is that significant? The top-30 finishers at the KFT Championship earn their PGA Tour cards.

But the result didn’t hold. After reviewing video footage of the round, officials determined that Tuten had committed a violation on the 15th hole. With lift, clean and place in effect, Tuten did just that with his second shot on the par-5. But once he placed his ball back in its spot, the ball moved slightly. Tuten then moved the ball back to its original spot and played on.

That’s where he went wrong. According to rule 14.2e, if a player’s ball moves in this scenario, the player is required to pick up the ball and place it back in its original position. Since Tuten just rolled his ball back into position, he was hit with a two-shot penalty, dropping him to 32nd place and costing him a life-changing PGA Tour card.

Thomas Pieters twice mistakenly thinks ball is OB

For many golfers, hitting a ball out of bounds has disastrous consequences on their scorecard. For Thomas Pieters, not hitting shots OB resulted in additional strokes… twice.

Rules

On Sunday at the Open Championship, Pieters thought he had hit two drives out of bounds, proceeded to hit provisional tee shots, and in both cases later found his original ball.

The first occurred on the 8th hole, where rules officials told him his first shot was out of bounds, so he hit a second tee shot. Even though the ball was later found, Pieters was forced to take the penalty and place his second ball because the original had been declared lost.

Then on the 18th, Pieters hit another wayward shot that he thought might have gone OB. Instead of walking up to his ball to look for it, he hit a provisional. But Pieters had not officially declared his second shot as a provisional, so when he found his first tee shot, he was again forced to play his second and take another penalty.

Richard Bland gets slow-play penalty at LIV event

Competition on the LIV Golf league looks a lot different than the PGA Tour, especially when it comes to rules violations, which are extremely rare on the upstart circuit.

Just don’t tell that to Richard Bland. Playing in the July LIV event at Valderrama Golf Club, Bland and his group were put on the clock for slow play early in the second round. Then on the 15th tee, Bland took 1 minute and 49 seconds to hit his drive. As a result, he earned a two-stroke penalty for slow play, the first of its kind for LIV Golf.

Tommy Kuhl DQs himself due to aerated greens at U.S. Open qualifying

Golf is a cruel game, and good deeds rarely go unpunished, as Tommy Kuhl found out during U.S. Open local qualifying at Illini Golf Club. The University of Illinois senior shot a course-record 62 in the event, earning him a spot in U.S. Open sectional qualifying.

Rules

Or at least he thought he had. After his round, Kuhl realized he had been fixing aeration marks on greens during the round, thinking they were ball marks, a violation of rule 13.1c(2).

Upon realizing his error, Kuhl notified a rules official and disqualified himself.

“I should know better,” Kuhl said following the incident. “It comes down to me. I should know that rule.”

Mel Reid marks ball off putting green at Women’s PGA

While the men’s PGA Championship featured several rules incidents, the 2023 KPMG Women’s PGA Championship had a rules mishap of its own.

Rules

As she approached the 5th green on Sunday, Mel Reid was fighting to stay in contention at the major championship held at storied Baltusrol. She found her ball on what she thought was the edge of the green, so she marked, lifted and cleaned it to prepare for her putt.

After doing so, Reid started questioning herself, and called in a rules official. At that point it was determined that Reid’s ball was actually on the collar four inches from the putting surface. As a result, she had violated Rule 9.4b, which states, “If the player lifts or deliberately touches their ball at rest or causes it to move, the player gets one penalty stroke.”

ANWA defending champ gets devastating penalty on 1st hole

Returning to the first round of the Augusta National Women’s Amateur at Champions Retreat, Anna Davis was ready to embark on her title defense after claiming victory in 2022. But disaster struck on the 1st hole.

While lift, clean and place rules were put in effect for closely-mown areas on the course, Davis twice picked up her ball from spots in the rough, which was not allowed. As a result, she received a four-stroke penalty, two for each violation.

The post 14 biggest rules controversies, mishaps and blunders of 2023 appeared first on Golf.

The post Our most-read rules question of the year involved an intriguing hole-in-one conundrum appeared first on Golf.

The post Our most-read rules question of the year involved an intriguing hole-in-one conundrum appeared first on Golf.

That’s the crux of the issue in this year’s most-read Rules Guy column, which involved a question about golf’s holy grail, the hole-in-one.

Rules Guy has made a call on many hole-in-one inquiries in his day, from whether or not a shot that bounces off a rake counts as an ace to questions about one-shotters that go in on modified holes.

But this year’s query was of particular interest to readers because of some very specific circumstances. Rather than knocking his shot in the cup himself, Ken Skolny’s email asked for a ruling when a playing partner’s shot collides with a ball at rest on the green on a par-3, causing that ball to roll into the hole. Is it an ace?

Hmmm. Think you know the answer? Enjoy revisiting the details of Ken’s situation below, which was originally published on May 23, 2023. (You can read it in its original form here.)

The most-read rules question of 2023

While playing a par-3, the first player’s ball stopped about a foot from the hole. The third player’s shot from the tee hit the first ball into the hole. Not sure what the call is. Two good shots, by the way! —Ken Skolny, via email

Those are some fine players you’re surrounding yourself with, Ken. But what happened with the second player’s shot? Was it yours? Ace, or duck-hook out-of-bounds? Inquiring minds want to know!

Regardless, the first ball is replaced back to where it was and the other ball is played as it lies — with no penalty to either, obviously — under Rules 9.6 and 11.1. Keep hanging out with such super sticks, as it may rub off on you!

Need help unriddling the greens at your home course? Pick up a custom Green Book from Golf Logix.

Got a question about the Rules? Ask the Rules Guy! Send your queries, confusions and comments to rulesguy@golf.com. We promise he won’t throw the book at you.

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The post ‘Just leave it alone’: Lee Trevino takes aim at golf-ball rollback appeared first on Golf.

The post ‘Just leave it alone’: Lee Trevino takes aim at golf-ball rollback appeared first on Golf.

That was the case when Trevino recently joined GOLF’s Subpar podcast for a lengthy, wide-ranging interview with hosts Colt Knost and Drew Stoltz.

Given the recent announcement that the USGA and R&A plan to limit golf-ball distance for all golfers in the coming years, the topic was fresh on everyone’s minds, and the hosts couldn’t help but pick Trevino’s brain about it.

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And Trevino didn’t disappoint, offering up a detailed explanation on why he thinks the ball rollback is a bad idea, along with a few doses of his trademark humor.

“Well you know I have mixed emotions about what they’re trying to do to it right now,” Trevino said. “They’re a little bit upset about… they’re thinking that the golf courses are not long enough.”

But Trevino thinks the golf ball is not to blame and identified two bigger contributors to golf’s distance leap in the 21st century: that modern pros are bigger and stronger than they once were and that new golf-club designs have enhanced distance for everybody.

“These guys are trained, they’re bigger, they don’t have any fat on them like me,” Trevino said of today’s pro golfers. “They’re bigger guys, they’re taller, they hit it so far. And the way that the golf clubs are manufactured, they’re made stronger. All of these clubs that they’re hitting now… you’re sitting at home and the guy’s got 167 yards. What’s he hitting? He’s got a wedge out. And you’re saying, ‘What? A wedge?’ We were hitting 6-irons 165.

“But the problem is manufacturers have been able to manufacture golf clubs to where they have less loft, but the way that the cavity back is constructed and because the clubs are hollow they have a little bit of a trampoline effect now, and the ball gets high and it goes farther. And everyone’s starting to panic about ‘oh we got to make the golf courses longer.'”

But Trevino argued that increased distance is only an issue for pros, while shortening golf courses would affect recreational golfers the most. He then used a hypothetical about tennis to make his point.

“I’m just wondering now, are they going to do this with tennis also? Because the guys are too good are they going to put chairs his side on the court?” Trevino joked. “I think they should just leave a good thing alone. Just leave it alone. I think it’s in a good spot, if they keep messing with it, they’re going to mess it up.”

Furthermore, he argued that pros hitting it farther is actually not the major problem people make it out to be. In the end, it’s all relative.

“They’ve got to leave this thing alone. I don’t know why they’re talking about bringing the ball back,” Trevino continued. “It’s all relative. It doesn’t make any difference how far it goes. The guy still that hits it the farthest and has got the fastest clubhead speed, regardless of what you make the ball, he’s still going to be the longest hitter. They should leave it alone.”

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Trevino closed out the segment with a joke at the expense of golf’s governing bodies.

“All these people, in my opinion, who are making these decisions, I don’t see anything wrong with them going into a boardroom and talking about what they’re going to do,” Trevino said, “But there can’t be a cocktail party before they start this. You understand?”

You can watch Trevino’s entire Subpar appearance on YouTube above, or listen the to episode below.

The post ‘Just leave it alone’: Lee Trevino takes aim at golf-ball rollback appeared first on Golf.