‘The Dumbest Rule’: Jordan Spieth Receives Golf World’s Support as PGA Tour Gets Bashed for ‘Harsh’ Penalty

The second day at the Riviera Country Club saw heaps of drama. From Tiger Woods withdrawing from the 2024 Genesis Invitational to rumors of Jordan Spieth following the legend out of the game. Surprisingly, the 30-year-old did follow the legend out of the game, but for a different reason. He was disqualified!

The golfer went ahead to sign an incorrect scorecard during the second day of the third signature event of the 2024 PGA Tour calendar. Well, the mistake cost the pro, his future in the tournament, and for the men’s circuit, the support from the fans as many decided to turn against the Tour following the penalty.

Jordan Spieth and the unfortunate punishment

During the par-3 fourth hole at the Riviera Country Club, Spieth went ahead to sign for a score of par on the card, while in actuality, he had dished out a bogey. This, as per the rules of the Jay Monahan-led circuit, disqualified the golfer since it was lower than the player’s actual score, leading to his early exit from the event despite scoring a 3-under par over the two days of play.

What did the 3-time major champ say? Well, he did not make up any excuses nor was he angry at the circuit. “Rules are rules,” he said after admitting his mistake of signing an “incorrect scorecard” before going ahead to declare how he would “take full responsibility.” Nothing short of an admirable reaction from the golfer.

Adding on, the Texas-born golfer said, “I love this tournament and golf course as much as any on @PGATOUR” as he went ahead to express his sadness at not being able to “have a run at the weekend.” Nevertheless, he was very appreciative of the support he received. However, the fans did not take lightly to the turn of events.

Many in the community took to respond to the punishment that was handed out to the athlete. Just the fans? No, not even close, as many of his fellow professionals also shared their minds on the same.

The ruling sends the community into a frenzy

The internet went crazy after the penalty was given to the pro. From reactions calling the rule nothing short of dumb to those sympathizing with the golfer, the community was sent into a fervor. Let’s take a quick look at some of them.

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Kip Henley, a professional caddie, came out in support of the golfer as soon as the punishment was made known to the public. He went ahead to dub the rule as nothing short of the “dumbest” one to ever exist on the PGA Tour.

Unfair? So says another professional as he came forward to express their support for Spieth. Michael S. Kim went ahead to point out the irrelevancy of the rule owing to the number of safeguards in place to prevent the same.

There are numerous measures set in place to prevent the miscounting of strokes, including cameras, referees, etc. Even so, the golfer was the one who got forced out of the event due to a mistake. Byeong Hun An couldn’t help but term it as “harsh”.

“Nonsense” is the word used this time around and it was used by Mike McGee, Annika Sorenstam’s husband. Moreover, he pointed out how the regulation was made at a time when the current technology wasn’t present, all the while taking a jab at the PGAT for the recent ruling.

What happens in other sports? Well, they have an official scorer, while the PGA Tour still asks its players to record the score. The fan went ahead to bring in the case of the NBA and hilariously took a poke at the Monahan-led circuit.

Meanwhile, it wasn’t as if Spieth did not receive any backlash for his mistake. An enthusiast went ahead to showcase their savage side as they brought in the idea of knowing simple math to the equation.

Nevertheless, it was truly an unfortunate occurrence that took place at the Riviera Country Club on the second day of play. What did you think of the whole ordeal? Let us know in the comments below.

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