USGA's debate over penalizing Johnson at U.S. Open angers golf's big names
Because of a rules question, there was no definitive score attributed to Dustin Johnson as he worked his way through the final few holes of the U.S. Open's final round.
And some of Johnson's high-profile colleagues were not happy about it.
Johnson, who made up a four-stroke deficit to surpass Shane Lowry for the lead by the time Johnson had made the turn on his final round, was informed by the USGA while on the 12th tee that he might be penalized for his ball moving on the fifth green.
Despite a USGA official initially ruling that Johnson did not cause the ball to move prior to his 6-foot par putt, the organization later deemed that Johnson might have caused his ball to move.
The USGA's Jeff Hall told the Fox telecast that Johnson will be asked to review a clip of the situation after he finishes his round before a final decision is made, and he hinted Johnson might have that penalty added to his score. The other golfers on the course were notified of the situation.
Jordan Spieth, Rory McIlroy and Rickie Fowler took to social media to express their disagreement with the USGA's handling of the situation.
McIlroy ( @McIlroyRory ) tweeted: “This is ridiculous... No penalty whatsoever for DJ. Let the guy play without this crap in his head. Amateur hour from @USGA .”
Spieth (@JordanSpieth) quickly followed by tweeting: “Lemme get this straight.. DJ doesn't address it. It's ruled that he didn't cause it to move. Now you tell him he may have? Now? This a joke?”
Minutes later, Fowler (@RickieFowler) mentioned Spieth and McIlroy and tweeted: “(With) you boys! The fact that the @usga thinks that DJ caused the ball to move is completely ridiculous! Laughable!”
Fox commentators expressed similar bafflement. Many fans on the course, informed of the situation via social media and portable satellite radio receivers that were available, were buzzing about the situation and over the reactions of Spieth, McIlroy and Fowler.
Chris Adamski is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at cadamski@tribweb.com or via Twitter @C_AdamskiTrib.
