2016 U.S. Women's Open

[Bad9]

I think we are too far down the path for video not to be used and having every shot taking by every player while most fair is not likely very practical. At this point use the video to determine if there was a violation if reported by a player, caddy or on course official. They do need to set limits though. It's idiotic that you, me, a cameraman and even an announcer, anyone who is not part of the actual competition, can report a potential rules violation. Absolutely, completely idiotic.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

What the camera man saw should have no bearing on it, he is not a part of the competition. It doesn't make golf more "honourable" to have outside agents calling in rules violations.

[4waymiss]

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Let's change this to the Super Bowl.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear holding violation and showed it on TV, what should the NFL do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Kind of a different outcome here? Fox would show the penalty but the cameraman or woman can't impact the outcome of the game.

 

Yes, in this case NFL ( and most other sports) adopts the "missed calls are part of the game" philosophy. If USGA wants to adopt that approach too, I have no problem with it.

 

If Anna Norquist ended up holding the trophy because of the missed call, that's on par with most other sports.

 

The key is to have a standard protocol to follow so we won't have these kind of situation happens again.

[Bad9]

I think we are too far down the path for video not to be used and having every shot taking by every player while most fair is not likely very practical. At this point use the video to determine if there was a violation if reported by a player, caddy or on course official. They do need to set limits though. It's idiotic that you, me, a cameraman and even an announcer, anyone who is not part of the actual competition, can report a potential rules violation. Absolutely, completely idiotic.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

And how "clear" was it if it was only detectable under super zoom with super HD video review? What was his agenda on first looking for it and then reporting it?

[DavePelz4]

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Let's change this to the Super Bowl.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear holding violation and showed it on TV, what should the NFL do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Kind of a different outcome here? Fox would show the penalty but the cameraman or woman can't impact the outcome of the game.

 

Yes, in this case NFL ( and most other sports) adopts the "missed calls are part of the game" philosophy. If USGA wants to adopt that approach too, I have no problem with it.

 

If Anna Norquist ended up holding the trophy because of the missed call, that's on par with most other sports.

 

The key is to have a standard protocol to follow so we won't have these kind of situation happens again.

 

If you don't mind, I'll add 1 other point. In both Sunday's playoff and the Super Bowl, there are referees that are there to spot violations. If the ref didn't see it...

 

And your comment on having a protocol to follow is spot on. Telling 1 person there is a penalty before a shot and the other afterwards creates a disadvantage. Anna had basically nothing to lose at that point and maybe she would try to hole it. Brittany, or was it Bethany, played even further right knowing that it would take a 1-putt/3-putt combination to eliminate the 2 stroke difference. Huge advantage to Brittany.

[4waymiss]

I think we are too far down the path for video not to be used and having every shot taking by every player while most fair is not likely very practical. At this point use the video to determine if there was a violation if reported by a player, caddy or on course official. They do need to set limits though. It's idiotic that you, me, a cameraman and even an announcer, anyone who is not part of the actual competition, can report a potential rules violation. Absolutely, completely idiotic.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

And how "clear" was it if it was only detectable under super zoom with super HD video review? What was his agenda on first looking for it and then reporting it?

 

By "clear" , I don't mean "easily detectable" . I mean it as "indisputable", which is the case here.

 

The FOX camera man has a responsibility to his boss/viewer to report and show anything that may be of viewers' interest.

[hebsan]

My two cents on this:

 

You can't have an outside agency assist you in executing a shot, so an outside agency should not be in the process of penalization. It should be up to the player to determine if they committed a rules infraction.

[Seamus_McDuff]

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Let's change this to the Super Bowl.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear holding violation and showed it on TV, what should the NFL do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Kind of a different outcome here? Fox would show the penalty but the cameraman or woman can't impact the outcome of the game.

 

And if Anna had gone on to win in that scenario, how do you think she'd feel about her win once she saw the video and knew she had broken a rule? You think she'd say, "oops, got away with that one. Thanks for the check and trophy"?

[gunmetal]

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Let's change this to the Super Bowl.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear holding violation and showed it on TV, what should the NFL do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Kind of a different outcome here? Fox would show the penalty but the cameraman or woman can't impact the outcome of the game.

 

And if Anna had gone on to win in that scenario, how do you think she'd feel about her win once she saw the video and knew she had broken a rule? You think she'd say, "oops, got away with that one. Thanks for the check and trophy"?

 

I think she'd say...."Woah, didn't see that, didn't feel that, and it certainly didn't help me in any way."

 

If we're being completely honest here, if they had HD zoom on every shot fired by every player in every round and someone reviewing them (in other words if it was a level playing field), my guess is this would happen A LOT. With the number of rules golf has you can find infractions everywhere with HD zoom. Ask DJ.

[Seamus_McDuff]

As far as when to tell them, I'll take the USGA at their word that they told them as soon as possible. It just happens that the two officials that arrived to tell Anna did so right after she hit her third and before Brittany hers.

 

What if one player goes OB or in a hazard? How do you even out when to tell them then?

[Seamus_McDuff]

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Let's change this to the Super Bowl.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear holding violation and showed it on TV, what should the NFL do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Kind of a different outcome here? Fox would show the penalty but the cameraman or woman can't impact the outcome of the game.

 

And if Anna had gone on to win in that scenario, how do you think she'd feel about her win once she saw the video and knew she had broken a rule? You think she'd say, "oops, got away with that one. Thanks for the check and trophy"?

 

I think she'd say...."Woah, didn't see that, didn't feel that, and it certainly didn't help me in any way."

 

If we're being completely honest here, if they had HD zoom on every shot fired by every player in every round and someone reviewing them (in other words if it was a level playing field), my guess is this would happen A LOT. With the number of rules golf has you can find infractions everywhere with HD zoom. Ask DJ.

 

But she'd admit that she broke a rule and got away with it. I don't think she'd want to win that way.

[xxio]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

[duffer987]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

 

And again, IMHO you are 100% incorrect with that statement bolded in red, assuming you have the same definition of equitable (Fair to all parties as dictated by reason and conscience) that the rest of us have.

It boggles the mind, that you think informing players of the penalty at different points of playing the 3rd of 3 playoff holes is equitable :russian_roulette:

[North Texas]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

 

"There is no perfect solution to this one"

 

Cannot be summed up any better than this.

 

I haven't read one response yet that has the perfect solution to what happened. And I don't have one either :(

[4waymiss]

 

 

But she'd admit that she broke a rule and got away with it. I don't think she'd want to win that way.

 

Just go ask Tom Brady :D

[bladehunter]

In no way can this continue without drama every single time. Some calls get missed. That's life. If you win that way it may be hollow for you and it may not. Depends on the penalty. One like this with a grain of sand. So what. It's happened a million times and neither player nor walking judge could detect it. We just can now with the worm cam. If your going to have instant relay it must be for all. Otherwise it just won't work.

[Shilgy]

I'm a little late to this topic, & all the debating aside.....I'm just really happy that Brittany Lang won the tournament. She worked hard for this win & played well all week. So Anna got a penalty, that's golf, and Brittany won fair & square. I'll bet Duke University is sooooo proud of their first golfer to win a major (finally). Way to go Brittany.......Texas gal wins BIG!

But wouldn't you have preferred that the win was by sinking a 8-foot clutch par putt, than this? Ok, Stewart Cink won The Open, but I guess he never can recall that without thinking about the approach shot of Tom Watson on the 72'th. The record books will not only record number of wins, they will also show pictures, like that of Phil jumping with arms and legs in the air after that putt at 18th at Augusta.

 

I should say that I feel sorry for Brittany, that her victory always will be marred by this controversy.

?? The story of the Open a few years back was van de Velde but Lawrie got the win fair and square. Same with Cink..and Palmer over Venturi...and Casper over Palmer. Those wins are not marred but the story is part of the narrative. Most events have a winner and a loser that "could have" won.

[Seamus_McDuff]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

 

And again, IMHO you are 100% incorrect with that statement bolded in red, assuming you have the same definition of equitable (Fair to all parties as dictated by reason and conscience) that the rest of us have.

It boggles the mind, that you think informing players of the penalty at different points of playing the 3rd of 3 playoff holes is equitable :russian_roulette:

 

As I said previously, what if one of them had gone OB off the tee? Now one is hitting three to the green and the other five. Do you make the one hitting three go up to the green and hit a putt before telling them ?

[duffer987]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

 

And again, IMHO you are 100% incorrect with that statement bolded in red, assuming you have the same definition of equitable (Fair to all parties as dictated by reason and conscience) that the rest of us have.

It boggles the mind, that you think informing players of the penalty at different points of playing the 3rd of 3 playoff holes is equitable :russian_roulette:

 

As I said previously, what if one of them had gone OB off the tee? Now one is hitting three to the green and the other five. Do you make the one hitting three go up to the green and hot a putt before telling them ?

 

That is an interesting scenario :)

 

But that is not the scenario here, it was a very simple matching sequence of shots, that gave the USGA a very clear and equitable way to relay the penalty, which they decided not to take.

IMHO they could have told them at the same time, during the same sequence of play for the hole, to maintain the same playing conditions for both players, and deliberately chose not to. They weren't in separate groups holes apart, they were only on opposite sides of the same fairway.

[Bad9]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

 

This is my biggest issue with this. They got a report from an agent that wasn't a part of the competition. Its idiotic and shouldn't be allowed.

[TheGeekGolfer]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

 

"There is no perfect solution to this one"

 

Cannot be summed up any better than this.

 

I haven't read one response yet that has the perfect solution to what happened. And I don't have one either :(

No, there is no 'perfect' solution, perfect to whom? There is BETTER and there are several scenarios that are BETTER than they way it was handled.

 

My 'perfect' scenario is that as soon as they got word there was a possibility of a violation, STOP them from teeing off on 18! The replay had already come in. Better is at least tell them each before they hit their 3rd shot into the green. At least give Anna a shot at holing out for a chance.

 

You can't tell me she's p!ssed, sure she says the right things. I'd rather have honesty than playing to the 'social media'. You CAN be mad and think you got a raw deal AND also congratulate Brittany for a well played championship. The two are not mutually exclusive!

[Seamus_McDuff]

They had already teed off on 18 before FOX showed a replay.

 

At that point David Fay says that he has just informed the USGA(Thomas Pagel) of the problem.

[TheGeekGolfer]

They had already teed off on 18 before FOX showed a replay.

 

At that point David Fay says that he has just informed the USGA(Thomas Pagel) of the problem.

That's not how I remember it. I deleted the video and I can't find a full replay of the playoff. But, from Fox sports website...

 

After both players parred the first playoff hole, the 16th, Nordqvist was hitting out of a bunker on the 17th. Video replays showed that her club contacted the sand -- ever so slightly -- before starting her backswing.

 

The players went on to par the 17th while the USGA reviewed video of the incident. They were notified of the ruling -- a two-stroke penalty to Nordqvist -- while hitting their approaches to the 18th green at CordeValle in Northern California.

 

My point is if they were reviewing it while the players were finishing up 17, they could have stopped them from teeing off on 18. Then, Anna could have played 18 with the appropriate strategy. If anything, they could have gotten to her before hitting second shot, so she could decide to go for the green or lay-up more aggressively to leave a better angle to possibly hole-out on 3rd shot.

[Hawkeye77]

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Let's change this to the Super Bowl.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear holding violation and showed it on TV, what should the NFL do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Kind of a different outcome here? Fox would show the penalty but the cameraman or woman can't impact the outcome of the game.

 

Yes, in this case NFL ( and most other sports) adopts the "missed calls are part of the game" philosophy. If USGA wants to adopt that approach too, I have no problem with it.

 

If Anna Norquist ended up holding the trophy because of the missed call, that's on par with most other sports.

 

The key is to have a standard protocol to follow so we won't have these kind of situation happens again.

 

If you don't mind, I'll add 1 other point. In both Sunday's playoff and the Super Bowl, there are referees that are there to spot violations. If the ref didn't see it...

 

And your comment on having a protocol to follow is spot on. Telling 1 person there is a penalty before a shot and the other afterwards creates a disadvantage. Anna had basically nothing to lose at that point and maybe she would try to hole it. Brittany, or was it Bethany, played even further right knowing that it would take a 1-putt/3-putt combination to eliminate the 2 stroke difference. Huge advantage to Brittany.

 

No question you can't give one player that kind of advantage. If they got there too late to stop Anna, should have kept it zipped.

 

The protocol is intriguing. Heard the head R&A guy on today talking about their protocols (didn't really say what they were, except that their head rules guy stays in one place and is reviewing things/aware all the time - others stay put as well). Sounded like they want to be completely prepared to address any issues with efficient dispatch.

[Leftagain]

They had already teed off on 18 before FOX showed a replay.

 

At that point David Fay says that he has just informed the USGA(Thomas Pagel) of the problem.

That's not how I remember it. I deleted the video and I can't find a full replay of the playoff. But, from Fox sports website...

 

After both players parred the first playoff hole, the 16th, Nordqvist was hitting out of a bunker on the 17th. Video replays showed that her club contacted the sand -- ever so slightly -- before starting her backswing.

 

The players went on to par the 17th while the USGA reviewed video of the incident. They were notified of the ruling -- a two-stroke penalty to Nordqvist -- while hitting their approaches to the 18th green at CordeValle in Northern California.

 

My point is if they were reviewing it while the players were finishing up 17, they could have stopped them from teeing off on 18. Then, Anna could have played 18 with the appropriate strategy. If anything, they could have gotten to her before hitting second shot, so she could decide to go for the green or lay-up more aggressively to leave a better angle to possibly hole-out on 3rd shot.

 

Watching the recording it definitely played out that no-one saw the incriminating footage until after they had teed off on 18, that footage wasn't shown during play on the 17th. Roughly 6 to 7 minutes later they informed Anna. All in all that's not a terrible response time, it just turned out badly.

 

That said it could have been better, there was talk that the USGA had someone monitoring the telecast, given there was zero doubt a rule had been broken from the first time the replay was shown that official knew a penalty was in order as the players headed to their second shots, surely he/she could have sped up the process somewhat?

 

Lots of interesting discussion about this, couple of things

 

If the camera guy isn't a golfer he never bats an eyelid at what he saw and we're still playing the 18th..

 

Having a cold hard rule such as this protects the officials when delivering the bad news. If you bring intent into the equation then when a penalty is assessed you are directly insinuating the player intended to break the rules, no-one likes to be called a cheat so there could easily be nastiness. With the rule as it is the official is simply telling the player they broke a rule and are being penalised, nothing more.

[xxio]

So let's just take live golf off tv and announce winners after the officials have reviewed 4 days of footage?

 

You cannot do everything. There is no perfect solution to this one. Again imo what the USGA did was the most equitable. They got a report, reviewed, decided, and got the info out to the players asap regardless of the circumstances.

 

Any stoppage, ignoring the violation, or deciding after play makes future similar situations all fall under very subjective calls.

 

And again, IMHO you are 100% incorrect with that statement bolded in red, assuming you have the same definition of equitable (Fair to all parties as dictated by reason and conscience) that the rest of us have.

It boggles the mind, that you think informing players of the penalty at different points of playing the 3rd of 3 playoff holes is equitable :russian_roulette:

 

Because the informing was done asap regardless of the circumstances. My point being if there has to be an analysis of when to tell which player then you bring subjectivity in to play.

 

Is the shot difficult? Both are hitting 2 but one is in a bad lie/bunker? One can reach, the other one cannot no matter what.

 

Telling them as soon as the decision is made actually takes any possible favoritism out of the picture (for those saying an American was favored).

 

If they waited or had to analyze now they would have had to wait and analyze in the future as well.

 

It will never be equal so the best approach is like blind justice. Did it end up favoring Brittany, yes but thats like one player getting a lucky bounce out of a bunker another striping a drive into a 2 day old divot in the middle of the fairway.

[DavePelz4]

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear violation and show it on TV , what should USGA do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Let's change this to the Super Bowl.

 

So in this case, when FOX camera man saw a clear holding violation and showed it on TV, what should the NFL do? Should they just ignore it and treat it like any other sports where missed/bad calls are "part of the game" ?

 

Kind of a different outcome here? Fox would show the penalty but the cameraman or woman can't impact the outcome of the game.

 

And if Anna had gone on to win in that scenario, how do you think she'd feel about her win once she saw the video and knew she had broken a rule? You think she'd say, "oops, got away with that one. Thanks for the check and trophy"?

 

My guess is she'd feel the exact same way that Brittany feels. But...after a day or so and once the funds hit the account, you kind of forget the minute little grains and remember the great 72 holes you played and the performance in the playoff.

[pmcuk]

 

Did it end up favoring Brittany, yes but thats like one player getting a lucky bounce out of a bunker another striping a drive into a 2 day old divot in the middle of the fairway.

 

 

Not remotely the same. You simply cannot subject some players to HD coverage and not others. It's not right, it's not fair and it should be stopped at once. Media cameramen are not officials and they have no business interfering with the game and how the actual officials run the game.

 

Sport has to be fair for all or it's not sport.

[TheGeekGolfer]

Did it end up favoring Brittany, yes but thats like one player getting a lucky bounce out of a bunker another striping a drive into a 2 day old divot in the middle of the fairway.

 

 

Not remotely the same. You simply cannot subject some players to HD coverage and not others. It's not right, it's not fair and it should be stopped at once. Media cameramen are not officials and they have no business interfering with the game and how the actual officials run the game.

 

Sport has to be fair for all or it's not sport.

How do you feel about instant replay (ie - the Hawkeye system) in tennis? In particular, it's use at Wimbledon? There are 19 courts in play for the tournament and it's my understanding that the Hawkeye system is only used on the 6 'show' courts. So, it's not being used throughout the tournament and only being used for top players and their matches. Also, while it looks 'exact' based on the graphic shown, it's actually a representation of where the ball 'most likely' landed, based on statistics.

[Seamus_McDuff]

They had already teed off on 18 before FOX showed a replay.

 

At that point David Fay says that he has just informed the USGA(Thomas Pagel) of the problem.

That's not how I remember it. I deleted the video and I can't find a full replay of the playoff. But, from Fox sports website...

 

After both players parred the first playoff hole, the 16th, Nordqvist was hitting out of a bunker on the 17th. Video replays showed that her club contacted the sand -- ever so slightly -- before starting her backswing.

 

The players went on to par the 17th while the USGA reviewed video of the incident. They were notified of the ruling -- a two-stroke penalty to Nordqvist -- while hitting their approaches to the 18th green at CordeValle in Northern California.

 

My point is if they were reviewing it while the players were finishing up 17, they could have stopped them from teeing off on 18. Then, Anna could have played 18 with the appropriate strategy. If anything, they could have gotten to her before hitting second shot, so she could decide to go for the green or lay-up more aggressively to leave a better angle to possibly hole-out on 3rd shot.

 

The initial review was only of the live shot that we all saw. It was later that the other angle became available.

 

http://www.golfchannel.com/news/golf-central-blog/usga-again-tough-spot-after-nordqvist-rules-confusion/

[TheGeekGolfer]

They had already teed off on 18 before FOX showed a replay.

 

At that point David Fay says that he has just informed the USGA(Thomas Pagel) of the problem.

That's not how I remember it. I deleted the video and I can't find a full replay of the playoff. But, from Fox sports website...

 

After both players parred the first playoff hole, the 16th, Nordqvist was hitting out of a bunker on the 17th. Video replays showed that her club contacted the sand -- ever so slightly -- before starting her backswing.

 

The players went on to par the 17th while the USGA reviewed video of the incident. They were notified of the ruling -- a two-stroke penalty to Nordqvist -- while hitting their approaches to the 18th green at CordeValle in Northern California.

 

My point is if they were reviewing it while the players were finishing up 17, they could have stopped them from teeing off on 18. Then, Anna could have played 18 with the appropriate strategy. If anything, they could have gotten to her before hitting second shot, so she could decide to go for the green or lay-up more aggressively to leave a better angle to possibly hole-out on 3rd shot.

 

The initial review was only of the live shot that we all saw. It was later that the other angle became available.

 

http://www.golfchann...ules-confusion/

 

Right, thanks for that link. However, this is where they really messed up.

 

As to why the USGA didn’t just halt play while Bodenhamer and Pagel made their way back to the compound to watch the video, Bodenhamer explained that they needed “conclusive evidence” to justify halting play. They didn’t have that until they got to the compound and saw Fox’s zoomed-in footage.

 

It's a 2-person playoff, going to the LAST hole, either tied or 2-shot difference. Where in their 'rules' does it say they need 'conclusive evidence' to stop play? If they had a full-time review official, IN THE BOOTH, which with a minor bit of foresight, is how it should be handled, this would be a non-issue. The fact they have to send someone back to the booth to review it is the bigger problem. I could see if it was earlier in the round and they didn't want to hold things up in case play ran long and get all the groups backed up. But, this was NOT that situation. This type of issue, potential penalty for last group(s) in contention on Sunday and / or in playoff need to be addressed immediately and if there is a POSSIBLE ruling, halt play and have the booth official review ALL angles / replays and then RADIO to the on-course referee the decision. That would solve the problem.