"Last year there were at least six such DQs."

In the July 25th Golf World, Ron Sirak pens "The View" titled "Defending the Rules" (not posted online). In it he notes this item related to the Michelle Wie scorecard signing incident:

In truth, the LPGA went out of its way to be fair. Tour officials did not find [out] about the Friday incident until after Wie teed off Saturday. After clarifying the rule with the USGA, the tour decided to let Wie finish her round uncluttered by the issue and then allow her to respond to the accusation. To her credit she verified the account.

To think this is some vendetta against Wie is simply wrong. According to the LPGA, her's was the fourth DQ this year for failing to sign, one of which occurred after the player in question had taken only a step outside the scoring area. Last year there were at least six such DQs.

I don't believe anyone sees this as an LPGA vendetta, do they? Seems more like LPGA incompetence or budget restrictions. Incompetence gets the nod here because, really, ten DQs in the last year or so?

In the interest of players, fans or sponsors, at what point do you (A) put an official in the scoring room (B) get local LPGA or PGA members to man the scoring tent or (C) put up an enormous sign on the back of the door saying, SIGN YOUR CARD, LADIES!

I contacted the PGA Tour to find out how many times a player was DQ'd for not signing their card in the last year.

Zero.

How many times this century?

Zero.

The last time that a PGA Tour player did not sign his card was 1997. 2005 (see JohnV's link below).

Comments

[JohnV]

Somebody at the PGA Tour has a memory problem. Here is one article from 2005 about Dean Wilson getting DQ'ed at the Buick Invitational for not signing his card.

http://thesandtrap.com/pga/dean_wilsons_growing_pains

Most PGA Tour DQ's are for signing wrong score cards as Sergio Garcia did at the PGA last year. When this happens because the score was recorded wrong it is just as bad an error in my mind. The player has two responsibilities. Sign the card and make sure the 18 hole scores are correct. When the DQ happens because they committed a violation, but didn't know it at the time, it is more understandable.

Other tours have also had their problems with signatures.

The European Tour is not incident free. Paddy Harrington was DQ'ed from the Benson & Hedges when in the lead before the final round for not signing his card on day 1 in 2000

John Daly got DQ'ed in Australia in 2002

[JohnV]

Fulton Allem was DQ'ed this year on the Champions Tour for not signing his card at the Fed-Ex tournament

[Adam Clayman]

Why pay when it's the players responsibility?

[Geoff]

JohnV,
Good spot! I

Adam,
Here's why: State Farm and the fans were deprived of an exciting final day.

[Mark Allen]

Nice views allthough a touch simplistic... M Wie was disquallified for signing her card at the wrong place (out of the signing zone) not for a non signature on the card like all of the obove examples. A ridiculous situation at best. How could they let her hit off on Saturday? The LPGA should be ashamed of itself inforcing an embarrising rule like this. This poor girl will be wearing a Nike straight jacket before the year is out at this rate.

[JohnV]

Mark,
.
Michelle was DQ'ed for not signing her card. Once she left the tent, it was too late. The fact that some volunteers who didn't know the rule went after her and had her sign it was immaterial in the DQ other than delaying the discovery of it

[CMA]

I agree that the LPGA could handle this whole thing better, but does anyone honestly believe that "Team Wie" didn't know that she had forgotten to sign her score card before she teed off on Saturday AND didn't know it should mean automatic DQ. Let's not forget that they have been very savvy about the rules before (Rule 88 comes to mind).

I just can't imagine that news of this blunder didn't reach Wie's handlers within 30 minutes of the incident....and assuming they did know about it, didn't they have an obligation to turn themselves in? Heck...from a PR standpoint it would have been a WIN - WIN.

[Smolmania]

I'm sorry, but I play a lot of tournament golf, and I've never seen anyone dqued for failure to sign the card and have the score attested by the person who kept score. The folks at the desk (at least on the Weekly Challenge Tour that I play) won't take the card if it isn't signed, and I'll bet dollars to donuts that when John V is running a USGA event that same procedure is being followed. Yes, it was Michelle's fault that she somehow failed to sign the card before "turning it in," but what exactly was the person doing who she turned the card in to?

[86general]

I like Smols take on this. All these things - the scoring tents, the signing rules, the witnesses, all of it - exist to try to ensure that every competitor's score is recorded accurately, so that the final standings in the tournament are correct. No, you can't construct rules so elaborate so as to completely avoid the potential for human error and air-headedness, but when something like this happens, it's at the very least best to de-construct it and see if there isn't a problem with the process. Clearly, the most obvious thing here - beyond Michelle Wie's tragic screw up - is that the tour official or volunteer in the tent screwed up, too, or wasn't in the tent to begin with.

[Peter Pittock]

The scoring tents and lines hearken back to the 1968 Masters. Everything changed after De Vicenzo missed playing off for the title. Great account in
Curt Sampson's 'The Lost Msters'

[86general]

I wonder how long it will be before things go electronic? Yeah, you'll always keep a scorecard, but let's be honest. For the biggest championship in the world, why wouldn't you want to avail yourself of every possible opportunity to ensure correct scoring?

Every group has a marker with them, with an electronic keypad, entering the scores. After the round, the player must verify the score on a computer in the scoring area. The player has 90 minutes from when the marker puts the score in from the last hole to get to a scoring area and verify his/her score.

I am sure everyone over maybe 30 reading this will be either laughing hysterically or rolling their eyes derisively...you there, jneu?

Anyway, everything else is going electronic, and for all of our griping, it is better this way. Doesn't mean you can't still use cards if you want to, but there are many advantages to an electronic system.

[Mark Allen]

John V

you're just talking samantics when you say "Michelle was DQéd for not signing her card". I'm having a crack at the ridiculous rule that exists when a card "is signed" and considered "Not Signed" if done in the wrong place. I played Professional golf around the world for 15 years and have seen at least 50 examples of cards not being signed and then signed when found shortly after. I'm sure thses so called officials in golf are there to help compeditors... not just to inforse pathetic rules like this.

[S&T Convert]

The question for CB is "what would have happened if the incident is not discovered until Monday?"

[Papa Bing]

It's too bad Mark Allen doesn't get it, especially having made a living playing golf. The player must be responsible for the score and must sign for it. There has to be some statute of limitation on the signing. The rule works. It's the player's responsibility.