LA QUINTA, Calif. – Matthew Wolff’s Thursday scorecard gained a stroke on Friday.
Wolff, who shot 5-under 67 on Friday, was assessed a one-stroke penalty from Thursday’s opening round of the American Express for violation of Rule 9.4b (Ball Lifted or Moved by You – Penalty for Lifting or Deliberately Touching Your Ball or Causing it to Move).
Here’s what happened: On the first hole at The Stadium Course at PGA West, Wolff drove his ball 336 yards into the left rough. Wolff’s ball moved during his back swing and Rules official Slugger White discussed the situation with Wolff.
It was originally addressed by Wolff with the PGA Tour’s Rules Committee on Thursday, with the decision subsequently reversed on Friday after the Rules Committee gained access to video evidence not available at the time of the ruling that showed Wolff was responsible for the movement of his ball. With the one-stroke penalty, Wolff’s first-round score was bumped up to 72 for a 36-hole aggregate of 5-under 139.
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“The incident was filmed on PGA Tour Live and was not brought to our attention until Matthew was well into his second round today,” said PGA Tour Tournament Director Steve Rintoul. “Once we realized there was video evidence, we had to look at it. Matthew was extremely professional and initially thought he was in a disqualification situation. But, fortunately for him, it was not.
“He was acting under the jurisdiction of an official yesterday and understood how the penalty applies when a ball is moved by the player. Matthew said he didn’t feel like he caused the ball to move, but certainly understood that he could have. He was extremely professional about the entire situation.”
