Hardly anyone knows all the rules of our game.
In this email, I’ll tell you how to stop torturing yourself with them. The exam you take when getting your license in my country is great — it should exist — but we all know it's not enough.
Not knowing the rules or not having access to them during a tournament can be very costly.
We’re talking penalty strokes.
We’re talking disqualifications.
We’re talking about winning or losing a tournament.
That reminds me — just so you get the idea — that for decades, until 2017 when the USGA stepped in, any rules violation spotted by a viewer — even someone watching the tournament on TV from their couch — could:
- Call the organizer.
- Send an email.
- Use social media.
And if the info was reliable and verified, the player would be penalized. Millions of...
** couch referees**, influencing tournament outcomes armed with beer, snacks, and high-res video replays showing what players themselves couldn’t even see with their own eyes.
3 examples — but there are many:
- February 1991, Doral‑Ryder Open: In his stance in a water hazard, Paul Azinger moves small stones that cause the ball to move — a breach of Rule 13-4. A TV viewer sees it and calls the organizer.
2-stroke penalty + disqualification for signing an incorrect scorecard.
- Same rule, 13.4, with Anna Nordqvist at the 2016 US Women’s Open (CordeValle). During the playoff, Nordqvist hits from a bunker on the 17th hole. TV replays in ultra-slow motion show her club barely brushing a grain of sand during the backswing.
She’s penalized and loses the playoff — and the tournament.
- And finally the case that forced the rule change — Lexi Thompson at the ANA Inspiration: While replacing her ball on the green, Lexi does so inaccurately.
A viewer catches it on TV and sends an email 24 hours later.
Lexi loses the playoff and the title.
The controversy was such that starting in 2018, a local rule was introduced banning the use of HD video or external info when the player couldn’t reasonably detect the breach themselves.
Anyway, the point is — you too can be penalized at another level. I’m sure you’ve already been through something like this. Unclear or uncomfortable situations on the golf course. Just like I have.
In case you didn’t know — I’m a tech geek who plays golf, so when you signed up for this Golfletter, I gifted you access to a GPT assistant I’ve built and keep improving to help you with rules on the course.
So far, I’ve received good feedback on it. Let me know if it’s useful to you. Or not. That way I can make it better.
Thing is, access currently requires a paid ChatGPT subscription (I think it’s called ChatGPT Plus). So I’m also working on a web app where — for far less than what ChatGPT charges — you can have that golf referee…
In your pocket.
I’ll let you know when it’s ready, just in case you’re interested.
P.S. Other than that, I’m feeling happy today.
And I hope you feel the same — all weekend long.
Digital hugs!