Charley Hoffman Blasts PGA Tour, USGA Following Penalty in Phoenix
Charley Hoffman took to social media on Friday night to blast the PGA Tour over a rules infraction that he was penalized for during the second round of the Waste Management Phoenix Open.
On the par-5 13th hole, Hoffman hit his tee shot into the water.
After dropping twice, Hoffman placed his ball on what he called a “small tuff of grass. However, the ball then rolled down into the water.
According to the rules of golf, rule 9.3 notes that “If natural forces (such as wind or water) cause a player’s ball at rest to move, there is no penalty, and the ball must be played from its new spot.”
Because Hoffman’s ball was in the water, it was ruled as a lost ball and he lost another shot.
Hoffman made a double-bogey on the hole.
“I was under the impression that the USGA had changed that rule. I was wrong. Had to take another penalty for doing nothing wrong at all. Did everything by the book. It’s still mind blowing that a group of amateurs rule the professional game of golf. I also blame the PGA Tour rules officials for putting out a terrible penalty area line where this could even happen. No accountability at any level here. No protection for the players at all. You wonder why guys are wanting to jump ship and go play on another tour. Players need transparency, protection and consistency. We don’t have that under the current governing bodies.”
For the record, the same thing happened to Rickie Fowler back in 2019.
He ended up making a triple on the par-4 11th hole. He went on to win the tournament.