Golfers are obsessed with time – whether that’s the seconds that tick over to take a shot or the hours you can spend negotiating a busy day on the course.
So you’d think we’d more attuned to the passing grains of sand than most. But Garrick Higgo fell foul of a rule rarely seen on tour, but much more likely to be relevant in your weekend medal.
The South African became the first big rules casualty at the PGA Championship after he was penalised two shots for being late to the 1st tee for his opening around at Aronimink.
Higgo was on the practice putting green but PGA of America Rules chiefs said he was not “within the area defined as the starting point at his starting time”.
That area, for the 1st and 10th tees, was defined by “the rope, gallery stakes green bike fencing and/or blue stakes, blue dots or blue lines”.
What rule did Garrick Higgo breach at the PGA Championship?
So Rule 5.3a kicked into effect. It says a player must start at their starting time, which means they must be ready to play at that time and at the starting point set by the competition committee.
These times are treated as exacts, so 7.18am – which was Higgo’s starting time – means 7.18.00 and not any time up to 7:19.
The penalty for getting this wrong is disqualification but there are three exceptions, one of which is that the player arrives at the starting point, ready to play, no more than five minutes late.
If they do that, they receive the general penalty – and that is the two-shots Higgo was penalised by PGA rules chiefs. He is believed to have arrived a minute late and the penalty was applied to his first hole. He made a double bogey six.
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He was brilliant from then on, making four birdies and one bogey for a 69 and a one-under par total.
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Afterwards, he told Sky Sports Golf: “I always cut it fine and this morning it was pretty cold. I never want to get to the tee 10 minutes before and be cold when I have to hit a driver far and straight, hopefully, and I usually hit five putts before I go to the tee.
“My caddie dropped my Trackman in the locker and I went to the putting green thinking that I still had about five minutes and I obviously did not. I hit one putt and I heard my name. My caddie was yelling at me and I ran down and got a two shot penalty”.
He later added: “I was there on time, but the rule is, if you’re one second late, you’re late. So if you think about it, I was there on time, if you know what I mean.”
Why does this matter to you? Because the rules are exactly the same in your club competitions. If you’re late teeing off, you could be hit with a big penalty too.
Just as likely, you might come a cropper with one of Rule 5.3a‘s other provisions, which is that you must not begin your round before your starting time.
Again, there is an exception for players who start “no more than five minutes early”, but the same two-stroke penalty still applies.
So if you’re thinking of setting off early, even if the tee in front of you is clear, you might want to bear this rule in mind. You might think it unbelievably harsh if it was ever called on you in a monthly medal, but it is there in the book!
Now have your say
What do you think of the two-shot penalty for Garrick Higgo? Should exceptions be made and did you know the rule was so strict, and applied to your club games too? Let me know in the comments, or drop me a line on X.
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