Article posted 8/27/03 | David's Profile 808Golf | tell a friend

For those of you that don’t know me my name is David Kim and I have been doing scoring and scoreboards here in Hawaii for more than ten years. Along with my wife Amy, we have done many events from one-day shotguns, local club outings, state tournaments and full field events for all the professional tours and have seen it all. From simple oversights to downright cheating on the scorecards that can have you disqualified.

By now most of you have heard about the unfortunate incident that occurred at this years British Open involving two player who were disqualified for signing the wrong score card. The solution was as simple as striking out the wrong name and inserting the correct one. (There are more ways to correct the situation).

At a more recent tournament, the Army Amateur, a competitor turned in his card with a hole score that was higher than what he made (a 5 instead of a 4) and in this case the 5 must stay, even when the total was correct. The unfortunate part is that the player missed making the cut by one stroke and could not play the last round.

The ultimate responsibility falls on the players, but the committee at the British Open, must accept part of the screw up. The committee is there to assist the competitors in making sure that the scorecard is correct. In my opinion, the Committee could have and should have made the correction. I think they should have disqualified themselves and let the players continue.

The above scenario happened at a tournament that was played recently. And I feel the committee made the correct decision by accepting the cards by switching the names of the players and allowing them finish the tournament. Whether you are in contention or not, it is very important that you check your card for accuracy and bring any discrepancies to the Committee BEFORE handing in your card. The Committee also has its responsibilities by making sure the participants have completed all that is required for a correct scorecard. Just remember, the committee does not disqualify you, you disqualify yourself. Check out rule  # 6 in the USGA Rules Of Golf for a complete explanation.

Just remember, your round is not over after the last putt on the last hole, but when you turn in your scorecard!

Golf is a game, and a game is fun, enjoy it.

See you at the next tournament, come up and say hello and ask questions or tell us your horror stories.

Aloha,

David