Tiger Woods, Rory McIlroy and others respond to new USGA's proposed rules
Overwhelming response from pro golfers about the proposed rule changes is positive
Do you remember the tweet Rory McIlroy fired off as Dustin Johnson’s 274th (or 275th) shot of the 2016 U.S. Open landed a few feet from the cup on the 18th hole at Oakmont Country Club?
I do.
Take that @usga
— Rory McIlroy (@McIlroyRory) June 19, 2016
The USGA, as you remember, was embroiled in a rules fiasco with Johnson throughout his final round at Oakmont. He had (maybe) inadvertently caused his ball to move on a green on the front nine, and the USGA said he might be penalized during his round, which led to nobody actually knowing what his score was.
It was a complete mess.
On Wednesday, the USGA and R&A came out with a new set of proposed rules that included an update to the “Dustin Johnson rule” that read: “A player will be penalized only when it is known, or virtually certain (at least 95 percent), that he caused the ball to move, which should eliminate many of the questionable calls. Once cleared, a player will be allowed to replace the ball on its estimated original spot.”
To his credit, McIlroy praised the USGA on Wednesday, and he was not the only one. Here is a collection of (deserved praise) from PGA Tour pros including Tiger Woods, Jordan Spieth and McIlroy.
“I think golf’s emphasis on the rules can sometimes turn people away from it,” McIlroy told the Associated Press. “To modernize and make it simple is a good thing. With what’s happened in the last couple of years, with some rulings and high-profile things that have happened at crucial stages in tournaments, people who look at that and might want to get into the game say, ‘You know what? It’s too complicated.’
“Making them more modern to move with the times is good.”
Tiger Woods, Jim Furyk and Zac Blair agreed.
Love these new rule changes by the @RandA and @USGA hopefully they are accepted. These make everything less confusing, should help a lot 👍🏼
— Zac Blair (@z_blair) March 1, 2017
Happy to see @USGA trying to simplify the rules and make the game more enjoyable.
— Jim Furyk (@jimfuryk) March 1, 2017
Lots of thought & hard work by @USGA and @RandA to modernize our rules. Great work to benefit the game.
— Tiger Woods (@TigerWoods) March 1, 2017
However, Justin Thomas and Daniel Berger -- two of the young stars in the sport -- were not as enthusiastic.
Agree with this. Some rules good, others not crazy about ( fixing spike marks will be abused, grounding club in bunkers) https://t.co/egpjlRm6V9
— Justin Thomas (@JustinThomas34) March 1, 2017
Ultimately any progress made in simplifying the sport is a good thing. Did the USGA and R&A nail everything this time around? Probably not, but they corrected a lot of silliness. Hopefully this is only the beginning.
















