During the PGA Championship last week, one of professional golf’s four “major” annual tournaments, Sergio Garcia, a golfer rated as one of the 10 best in the world, was disqualified from further competition in the four-day match after signing an inaccurate scorecard for his second round of play.
A player’s score is kept by his opponent, and by himself, too. At the conclusion of a round, the opponents swap scorecards, check that their memories of every stroke by hole matches, and sign the documents. The results are duly recorded. When there is a discrepancy, the golfer who signs the wrong score suffers the consequences.
Perhaps the most famous faux pas in this regard was when Roberto De Vicenzo finished tied for first in the 1968 Masters Tournament (another of pro golf’s four prestigious major events), but signed his scorecard showing a higher score than he actually shot, which resulted in his missing a playoff opportunity and a chance to win the coveted “Green Jacket.”
Many consider golf an anachronism for the wealthy, idle rich. Granted, the endeavor takes a considerable amount of time (four to five hours for a round of golf -- 18 holes – depending upon your skill level) and expense (anywhere from $20 to $400).
Still, for all its detractions, golf offers purity and purpose no other sport provides. Golfers are expected to police themselves. If they inadvertently move their ball, that’s a penalty, which honorable players will call against themselves. Tournaments have been lost due to this fessing up.
Bobby Jones, a renowned golfer from the past and the man who created the Masters Tournament, reportedly was miffed by compliments about his honesty when he called a penalty on himself that no one else had seen. It cost him a victory at the U.S. Open, another of the four majors. Jones responded that "You may as well praise a man for not robbing a bank." In golf, rules are the soul of the sport.
Golf is the only professional sport I know where participants play half the tournament – two days of the scheduled four – just to determine who makes the cut and earns the right to keep competing. Meritocracy defines the sport.
Sure, folks like Tiger Woods have created huge purses, and winning golfers, and even those who do not win tournaments, earn millions of dollars yearly based on their week-to-week performances. Yet, in the end, if a player cannot make the cut and continue to participate through the weekend, that golfer receives no money and must absorb the associated expenses (planes, hotels, food) for the abortive effort. Even with such pressures to perform, golfers show incredible honor and assume great accountability as they pursue their crafts.
I wish life more resembled golf. We would reap the benefits and be recognized for our good efforts, but also graciously accept the consequences when we failed to do our best.
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YETMO: “You’re Entitled To My Opinion,” A Balanced Point of View
"To stimulate thought, debate, and introspection”
Fred W. Apelquist, III, M.Ed.
Approximately 480 words.
© August, 2007