Tiger Woods disqualified from all tournaments for this reason (video) – Full video below👇👇👇

Tiger Woods disqualified from all tournaments for this reason (video) – Full video below👇👇👇

Tiger docked two strokes, avoids disqualification from Masters Tournament over improper drop at No. 15 on Friday

Competition committee chairman Ridley said Woods was ‘forthright and honest’

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Tiger Woods avoided what would have been the first disqualification of his career when the Augusta National Golf Club instead decided on Saturday to penalize him two strokes for an improper drop at the par-5 15th hole during the second round.

Woods’ score at the hole was changed to a triple-bogey 8 and his score for the day from 71 to 73. Woods will begin his third round at 1-under-par 143, five shots behind leader Jason Day. His pairing with Gonzalo Fernandez-Castano was not changed, and they teed off as scheduled at 1:45 p.m.

Woods was greeted with enthusiastic cheers from the crowd around the first tee, and while walking down the first fairway.

Woods issued a statement through Twitter saying that he did not know he had taken an improper drop.

Augusta National competition committee chairman Fred Ridley said Woods was “forthright and honest” during a meeting early Saturday morning when they reviewed the incident with him at the clubhouse. Ridley also said the club was not showing favoritism to the world’s No. 1-ranked player and four-time Masters champion.

“If this had been John Smith … he would have gotten the same ruling,” Ridley said. “It was the right ruling under these circumstances.”

Ridley said the governing bodies of golf and the major professional tours were consulted.

“I take great comfort in the fact that that we’ve advised the USGA and the R&A, as well as the PGA Tour and the European PGA Tour of this decision,” Ridley said. “I’m pleased the governing bodies and the tours are in agreement.”

And it all happened because Woods hit a shot that was too good.

His problems began when he pitched onto the 15th green with his third shot. The ball came within a fraction of an inch from landing in the hole on the fly for an eagle-3. Instead, it hit the bottom of the flagstick and caromed back into the water hazard.

Woods had three options under Rule 26-1 (a):

1. Play from the hole’s designated drop area.



2. Drop on a line from where the ball last crossed the hazard, as far back as he wanted.

3. Drop as nearly as possible to the original spot of his third shot, no closer to the hole.

Woods said he didn’t like the grain of the grass at the drop area and elected to take the third option. But by his own admission, he dropped about 2 yards from the spot of the original ball.

Here’s where it gets even more muddled, and why the club didn’t disqualify Woods: In the club statement on the issue, a TV viewer called with questions on Woods’ drop before the end of his round. The Rules Committe reviewed a replay of the drop while Woods was playing No. 18, and “based on that evidence, the Committee determined [Woods] had complied with the Rules.”

Ridley said Woods wasn’t notified of the call, or the club’s initial ruling, before he signed his scorecard.

The club said that after Woods mentioned in interviews about his drop, a further review was made and after meeting with Woods on Saturday morning, it was determined that he had violated Rule 26. The two-stroke penalty came because ofRule 20-7, which deals with playing from the wrong place.

The penalty of disqualification was waived under Rule 33-7, which gives the Committee the discretion to not disqualify a player. The club said it did not disqualify Woods because it had made its initial ruling prior to the finish of his round.

“It would have been grossly unfari to Tiger to have disqualified him after out committee had made that decision,” Ridley said.

When asked, in hindsight, whether Ridley should have told Tiger after his round, and before he signed his scorecard, he replied: “There’s not a day that goes by that there are not some things I wish I would have done differently.”

It was the second day in a row that the Rules of Golf have dominated the news during the 77th Masters. On Friday, 14-year-old Tianlang Guan was given a one-shot penalty for slow play, which put his overall score to 4-over par. He eventually made the cut on the number due to the 10-shot rule after Day failed to birdie the final hole.

When Woods was asked after the second round for a comment on the Guan ruling, he replied “rules are rules.”