Oakmont here we come

[Felix]

Second of the big four being played at an absolutely kick you in the nuts golf course....last time they played it here the winner Angel Cabrera won it at 5 over par....they'll make it even tougher because of the distance these guys hit it....as Lee Trevino once said about Oakmont, "If I'm two putting, I know I'm passing people on the leaderboard"

simply a monster course at 7,230 yards and like putting on a sheet of glass.....
you know the drill here, winner, dark horse, and anything else you'd like to venture a guess at

winner: Dustin Johnson
Dark Horse: Hideki Matsuyama

over under on the number of "others" on the score card 35

[BSmack]

Winner: Speith
Dark Horse: Bryson DeChambeau

[Goober McTuber]

Winner: Jason Day
Dark horse: Sergio Garcia

[buckeye_in_sc]

Winner - Justin Rose
Dark Horse - Bill Haas
Even Darker Horse - someone no one has heard of

[buckeye_in_sc]

check the tape...I had DJ

oh and way to try and bend him over USGA...

[Bucmonkey]

Would have much rather seen them bend over Paulina .

[Goober McTuber]

Still not sure what the USGA saw. DJ moved his putter behind the ball but didn't appear to set it on the ground. I saw the ball move. Backwards. Perhaps a function of them shaving the greens tighter than my last wax job.

As one of the analysts pointed out, they had a thoroughly competent rules official with each group. Why bother if you're not going to trust them to do their job.

[BSmack]

Perhaps a function of them shaving the greens tighter than my last wax job.

Don't say that shit at Augusta.

sin

[Felix]

That was an absolute bullshit call and then to tell him on number 12 could have fucked with his head......glad it didn't because I'm a big DJ fan.....to come as close as he has just to watch it go by the wayside was painful to watch....he really deserved it this time....I mean fuck a 382 yard drive on the first hole....he hits it so far it's almost unfair to the ther players....nice to see Furyk show up too....

[Dinsdale]

I'm on the opposite side of that fence... if DJ's actions didn't cause the ball to move, what did? It wasn't windy. He either placed his ball poorly, or disturbed the ground enough to move it.

Pretty far-fetched to think some mysterious outside force caused the ball to move.

So, which is more likely -- something DJ did made the ball move, or the Ball Fairy came and moved it?

But, it didn't matter in the end -- the bridesmaid finally walked down the aisle. I think he'll be a force in Majors to come, if he can keep his driver going like it has been of late.

Lowry's driver was on fire, too, but he just couldn't get an approach close, and his putter took the day off.

[Felix]

Pretty far-fetched to think some mysterious outside force caused the ball to move.

not far fetched at all.....I've had it happen to me a few times.....tends to happen on really sloped greens.....I hadn't ground my putter behind the ball.....so when it moved I didn't do anything to make it move....I mean if you think about it the ball is on a really sloped green and the smallest vibration could cause it to move.....the rules state

Q. A player replaces his ball on the putting green and the ball is at rest. Without addressing the ball the player steps away to read his putt.

The ball moves either due to the wind or the slope of the putting green. How should the player proceed?

A. The player must play his ball from the new position without penalty.

If the ball was moved into the hole then the player is deemed to have holed out with his previous stroke (Decision 20-3d/1).

Note: It is not relevant whether the player had removed his ball-marker before the ball was moved by the wind or gravity as the player's ball was in play when it was replaced (Rule 20-4).

so why would they have the term "gravity" in there if such thing never happens.....like I say I've had it happen to me.....I still think it's a horseshit penalty but it didn't affect the outcome so it's irrelevant at this point......the thing that pissed me off about it is that the rules guy walking with them told Johnson he was okay.....then they start reviewing tape and they deemed something he did to have caused the ball to move....but you have to have grounded your putter and clearly he hadn't....

[Dinsdale]

Gravity isn't spontaneous.

The rule seems too vague to me (I'm guessing it will be addressed). OBVIOUSLY, something he did caused the ball to move. There was no wind, and there was no fluctuation in gravity. A foot moving a few inches away, whatever -- something he did caused it to move.

And therein lies the rub -- nothing he did was anywhere close to anything but "standard play."

But IMO, by the letter of the rule, the penalty was correct.

And the USGA needs to fix the problem. Way too random to cost a stroke.

[Goober McTuber]

But IMO, by the letter of the rule, the penalty was correct.

Funny that none of the pros seem to agree with you.

[Felix]

But IMO, by the letter of the rule, the penalty was correct.

Funny that none of the pros seem to agree with you.

It's simply interpretation of what constitutes "caused the ball to move" when he set the putter down next to the ball for his practice strokes, they probably thought the vibration of him setting his putter down could have caused vibration enough to move the ball....or him stepping near the ball could have caused the vibration.....or it could have been a minor earthquake....who the fuck knows.....I've always played it that unless you've grounded your putter directly behind the ball, you haven't addressed it.....everyone I've ever played with interprets it exactly like that.....I've had it happen a few times in a tournament and always stepped back and noted to the other players the ball moved.....never once have they ever said, "you caused it to move, take a one stroke penalty"....granted. local tourneys aren't the US Open, but the rules should be the same regardless of where your playing....like Dins said, it's a really vague rule and is subject to what constitutes "caused".....hey here's an idea.....don't make greens so fast that a simple vibration could cause a ball to move....here's another idea, don't have a rules guy tell you nothing is wrong then go back and make a decision based on reviewing fucking video tape....they weren't there and the rules guy didn't hesitate in stating "no penalty".....that's what I think is bullshit....reviewing the tape and determining something he did caused it.....I've seen it any number of times and can't see what he did that might have caused it to move.....

[Dinsdale]

I'll follow up with... "what Felix just said."

If DJ isn't stepping around near his ball, it wouldn't have moved (but did Westwood's footsteps across the green make it move?).

Overwhelming odds are that something DJ did caused the ball to move. Again, by the letter of the law, that's a penalty. And it's a bullshit penalty. It was "standard play." He did nothing that everyone -- us hacks and pros alike do on every putt.

And the other issue was not assessing the penalty immediately when they reviewed it. It changes the strategy of all the contenders -- not ony unfair to DJ, but everyone else within a couple of strokes or so.

I don't mind the fast greens for the ultimate challenge, but maybe on courses with mountainsides for greens, not so much.

FIX THE RULE!

[Felix]

FIX THE RULE!

zactly.....

[Bucmonkey]

[Dinsdale]

^^^^^$$$$$$$$$

[Felix]

jeezus palamino....I'd hit it....

[Goober McTuber]

jeezus palamino....I'd hit it....

The club....or....the clubber.

[Felix]

The club....or....the clubber.

yeah I'd love to hit this asshole



but no doubt, he'd beat the shit out of me.......
as far as your question is concerned......I doubt I could hit the club because it looks like some relic from the dark ages......we'll have to stick with the clubber in this instance