Should tour players be held to a higher standard for professionalism and breaking the rules?

[LCGALBERTA]

Should tour players be held to a higher standard, when it comes to professionalism and clearly breaking rules?

Most recent cases:

Patrick Reed clearly improving his lie in the sand trap - Clearly breaking rulesBryson aggressively hitting the green with his putter on the final round of WGC-Mexico - Lack of professionalism

[Smash Factors]

Not sure what you mean by "Held to a higher standard."

They should be penalized when they break the rules, but not more than any other golfer. The rules are pretty clear and so are the penalties.

What else can you do?

[golfandfishing]

What would the penalty be for “lack of professionalism”? Who decides what is a “lack of professionalism”? How hard does someone need to hit a green with their putter? Most importantly- how well liked does a player need to be in relation to their action?

[wildcatden]

According to GolfWRX, Patrick Reed should be held to 1.82M times the standard.

[DFS PFD]

What would constitute "lack of professionalism" and what would be the penalty? See Sergio Garcia outbursts and subsequent fines

[davep043]

I believe the PGA Tour has the power to censure its players for unprofessional behavior. Didn't an Asian Tour player get suspended for a good long while for unprofessional conduct, was he swearing loudly? These guys ARE held to a higher standard for behavior than most of us are. Players are fined for slow play regularly, even if they're not penalized on the course. But those fines aren't announced. If Bryson is fined for damaging the green, I'd bet that fine won't be announced either.But from a rules standpoint, we should all be treated similarly, pro or hacker. We should be subject to identical penalties for breaking the rules. To be clear, Reed moved some sand in the area of his intended swing in the General Area, not in a bunker. He broke that rule, and was penalized for it. Its a matter of discussion as to whether he did it intentionally, or whether he should have penalized himself, whether he was attempting to "cheat". But he broke a rule, and was penalized under the rule, exactly the same way I should be penalized if I break that same rule..

[farmer]

Rahm beat on a fairway in Mexico, hard and several times. Unprofessional, yes, but who would enforce that? Rules, the same standard should be in place at all levels. Club players, myself included, violate some all the time, but frequently for reasons other than a competitive edge.

[GoGoErky]

Simple no. The rules apply the same to all

[pdl16]

It's the beauty of the game. The rules and course are impartial to all.

A lot of what many may see as a lack of professionalism is just the the spirit of competition. These are the best and know it. When they miss one out there the fire comes out. Glad to see emotion out there.

Reed showed to err is human.

This past week he showed us to win on tour in a field like the one he did is super human.

[llewol007]

No difference in my book. Don’t care if you are on television versus playing at your local muni. Play the game right and straight up, and if you feel the need to rip up the green, somebody should take a driver shaft to the back of your thigh. There are just to many grey areas and that’s why guys think they can get away with stuff. But for me, the leadership whether it’s the tournament directors and or the rules guys should slap em with a penalty. And when it comes to your local muni, throw them off the course. There needs to be some sort of actual penalty for player regardless of how much more professional they are than me to accept the penalty for doing stuff they should t be doing.

[CasualLie]

Shouldn't the question be:

Should PGA Tour fines be disclosed?

Players are held to higher standards and many fines are assessed...albeit confidentially.

[bladehunter]

I voted not. The standard is clear. Why would they be higher ? This is akin to the idea that the penalty for murder of one person should be a tougher penalty because of that persons job title . Shouldn’t make any difference.

[Steele47]

What's funny is some Berkeley undergrad type flagged the OP. Good grief.

[JohnnyCashForever]

Tour players are already held to a higher standard.

In a game where each of us are supposed to be our own rules official, tour players are expected to adhere to that standard yet are also subjected to multiple layers of second-guessing by hi-def video replay, crowds of armchair officials watching their actions in person and on TV, social media martinets ready to pounce on any irregularity, and finally numerous tournament rules officials who are there to provide guidance or adjudicate their every move. These guys are really under the microscope.

[Ferguson]

 

Higher standard you query; such as an additional, 3rd party layer of behavioral governance?

 

 

 

I think no post should have the word clearly written more than twice.

 

[nitram]

"He without sin cast the first stone."

[GoGoErky]

OP as a forum member and more knowledgeable about the game should you be held to a higher standard than your playing partners who aren’t on a forum or may have less golf knowledge?

[Vindog]

They already are held to a higher standard. But technically the Tour(s) have the option to levy penalties above and beyond strokes if they so choose.

 

Do you remember the ET suspending Dyson?

[davep043]

I know this is out of date, but some of the Tour's authority to levy monetary penalties and suspensions is outlined here:

[idrive]

I only read the 1st couple of responses....

Shouldn't everyone be held to the same level in regards to the game and it's rules?

[Twism86]

Emotion makes the game fun to watch. Who hear hast made a terrible shot and taken a second swing and divot from the fairway in frustration? Got too aggravated from a shot that skipped over the green to fix your ball mark? It happens to us and it happens to the pros.

We should all follow the same rules and all humans have to vent when the pot boils over. No one wants to watch a boring robot of a player hit perfect shots and show no emotion for 72 holes.

[Hawkeye77]

Patrick Reed had an incident in a bunker???????

 

BAD gets a little testy with his putter = BFD.

 

 

[Vardon Grip]

As professionals who happen to break a rule or act in an unprofessional manner they get penalized for the breach and in the court of public opinion. That can lead to a direct pocketbook effect. So, yes, they have to meet a higher standard of punishment. Higher standard than the rest of the world? I don’t think so, they’re just people. People make mistakes or take advantage all the time. There’s a mechanism to deal with that.

[puttingmatt]

I thought the rules applied the same to everyone,

Tell that to your week end foursomes, lol

The pro's are no different,

[widow-maker]

There is a penalty in the rule book for what Patrick Reed did. And it was assessed. That's all that's needed as far as that infraction. Now, there's also the court of public opinion, and Reed has suffered greatly there. So, he lives with what he did. But there's no need to increase the penalty that's already in the rule book.