Golf Is Finally Blaming Technology...For Something
Wednesday, April 26, 2017 at 11:59 PM
Geoff in Rules, Technology

As Rex Hoggard at GolfChannel.com notes, a sport trying to modernize is suddenly acknowledging that technology might have taken things too far. But not with 340 yard drives that force the scale of the game to become bloated.

No, it's with replay and HD TV. As Hoggard notes, every other sport (for better or worse) is determined to get calls right using technology, but with this week's Lexi Decision, golf is headed backwards:

The rule makers are blazing new paths in what has been billed as a “modernization” of the Rules of Golf, but this new decision – which is entitled “limitations on use of video evidence” – feels like a step in the wrong direction.

No one is pleased with the the Thompson situation – neither the outcome nor that it took some 20 hours to unfold – and the desire to avoid similar incidents in the future is understandable, but sports have rules that must be applied no matter how much technology is needed to assure the proper outcome.

Yes, the "naked eye" test rolled out by the USGA and R&A appears to be the right thing to do. However, I'm pretty sure players whose "reasonable judgement" is relied upon over video evidence could leave them subject to integrity questions. Social media could gang up and tarnish reputations if the footage shows player judgement was possibly mistaken.

John Feinstein and I kicked around the issues on Golf Central this week:

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