Because Simpson had set his putter down behind the ball — about 4 or 5 inches behind it by his account — it was considered taking a stance and when the ball moved, ever so slightly, he was then assessed a one-stroke penalty.
Simpson finished regulation in a tie with Bubba Watson, who he would go on to lose to in a playoff.
“The problem with the rule is you get greens like this that they get pretty bare, almost like this table top, wind’s blowing, balls can wiggle and move so easily,” said Simpson, who had called the penalty on himself. “I go up to tap it in. It’s not like I rushed up there, I took my time.
“The unfortunate thing and the reason I don’t think it’s a good rule is golf is supposedly the last gentleman’s game. There is so much on the player to call the penalty on themselves. When wind or other natural things affect the golf ball, the player shouldn’t be penalized.”
Simpson wasn’t taking anything away from Watson’s win but this is also the second time the rule has cost him a stroke and possibly a tournament.
In the final round of the 2009 Bob Hope Classic, Simpson was in contention when on the 11th hole in the final round the exact same thing happened. He had a putt inside of a foot, the wind moved his ball as he addressed it and he was penalized. Simpson tied for fifth.
“It just stinks, you know,” Simpson said. “Who knows if that happened or what would happen. It was just unfortunate.”
Simpson certainly had his chances to win in regulation on Sunday.
After playing the front nine in 4 under, Simpson played the back in 1 over with two bogeys and just one birdie. Slowly, a once three-shot lead evaporated.
On the 15th, he approached the ball and set the putter down behind it only for a moment with his feet spread beside it.
“I think the rule states if you’re in a stance where you’re going to hit the putt, that’s considered your stance, no matter what it looks like,” Simpson said. “And my putter was already grounded. I don’t think it matters how far behind the ball it was.”
Simpson is a member of the PGA TOUR’s Player Advisory Council and said he plans to address the rule in the next meeting.
While it’s too early to tell if a change will occur, Simpson said he’ll try to have it changed.
This isn’t the first time the rules have come up this season.
Camilo Villegas and Padraig Harrington were disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard because of a penalty that was assessed after play was completed and their card turned in.
That rule has since been amended, giving tournament committees the ability to add the penalty to a player’s score after the card is signed rather than disqualify them. Whether this rule changes remains to be seen.
”We’re the PGA TOUR, so I think the idea behind rules is to protect the players and protect the field,” Simpson said. “So according to the rule, in my opinion it doesn’t protect us, it hurts us.
“If there’s wind blowing, you’re going to have this happen a number of times the rest of the year, and cost guys tournaments, cost them good finishes. It doesn’t lineup with the rest of the rules of golf which say it’s a gentleman’s game; we should call penalties on ourselves.”
How would he rewrite the rule if given the opportunity?
“It’s simple,” Simpson said. “I think there should be no rule at all. If you address the ball and your putter touches the ball, it should be a penalty.
“There is no way in the world that a player can put his putter behind the ball and cause a ball to move without touching the ball. Just like if you’re in the fairway and you touch the ball, you call it on yourself. But if the ball moves, the ball moved because of the wind or the grass. Then you say, hey, my ball moved. Everybody says, okay, end of story. I think it’s pretty simple.”
Filed under: Bubba Watson, Webb Simpson
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