Saturdays in July
From 6:30 – Noon
$30 18 holes w/cart $17.50 9 holes w/cart
Noon – 6:00 pm
$25.00 18 holes w/cart
$15.00 9 holes w/cart
*July 14th outing until 2pm, July 28th outing after 5pm – call for tee times or book online at https://pinevalleyohio.com
Sung Kang was accused of cheating this weekend when his second shot on the par 5 10th went left of the hazard. He claimed it had recrossed the hazard pin high and stayed in the hazard and was entitled to a drop by the green. His playing partner didn’t agree and for 25 minutes they debated with a rules official. Kang told the official he was 95% sure it crossed where he said and the official reminded him that, that wasn’t 100%. In the end the rules official and his playing partner left it up to Kang to make the call which he chose to drop not pin high but some 30 some feet back but nearer the pin than his second shot.
Now playing in our local leagues rules can be changed to a local rule as long as the group agrees and everyone is aware of the rules. I know we used to have a rule in our league at the old Knollbrook golf course in Lodi that if you hit your ball o.b. on one you took your drop where it went out. The official rule is to go back to the tee and hit 3 from the tee. In Florida I played in a league that we went strictly by USGA rules and you played where it lies or you take your penalty. Now we would hit a provisional ball on close calls and if out we would already be lying the penalized number.
If you are playing in a league or tournament make sure you know the rules they are using. Hopefully Mr. Kang was and is able to sleep with his decision but if he cheated it is on his conscience.
Steve Combs
You can still get a good tee time this Wednesday for the Fourth of July but don’t wait too long. You can book it online or call the clubhouse at 330-335-3375. Our last tee time will be 4 pm and for 9 holes only so that we might enjoy the holiday with our families.
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What I saw on Sunday was the way the leader after 72 holes should play. Francesco Molinari played to win and not just hang on. His 62 on Sunday was dominant as he never let off the pedal even after opening a big lead with only several holes to go. No prevent defense for this champion as every chance he got to add to his score he took it. No laying up or hitting to the middle of the green, he hit every fairway except for one and didn’t miss many greens in regulation.
So many times we see teams and athletes play it safe or play not to lose and inevitably they lose because their mindset isn’t right. If you have a youngster who plays golf and really wants a career they should replay this round and see what Francesco did on every hole. If you look back at Tiger Woods when he first started he played the same way. He wanted to dominate his opponents. He just plain wanted it more than they did.
Steve Combs
Joel Dahmen’s profile received a heightened spotlight thanks to a weekend pairing with Tiger Woods. The 30-year-old journeyman grabbed attention for a different reason Sunday night.
In the final round of the Quicken Loans National, Dahmen was paired with Sung Kang. On the 10th hole at TPC Potomac, Kang’s second shot found the hazard. What followed was a bizarre, rarely-seen sequence on tour.
Kang believed his ball crossed the hazard, giving him a drop on the side of the hazard closer to the hole. Dahmen disputed the account, asserting Kang’s ball failed to cross. The argument continued for so long that the group behind the duo, Ben Crane and Ryan Palmer, played through.
A rules official eventually sided with Kang, as the South Korean player was allowed to take a drop on the side of the hazard closer to the hole. He would save par on the 10th and turned in a six-under 64, a score that translated to a T-3 finish that earned him an invite to the 2018 Open Championship.
Dahmen, however, continued to feel Kang’s drop was unjust, airing his grievances on Twitter Sunday night.
When asked why Palmer and Crane played through, Dahmen was blunt: “Kang cheated. He took a bad drop from a hazard. I argued until I was blue. I lost.”
This accusation quickly drew follow-up inquiries on the matter, and Dahmen was happy to oblige. “It was a typical dispute about where or if it crossed the hazard,” he said. “It clearly did not cross the hazard. We went back and forth for 25 minutes and he ended up dropping closer to the green.”
In spite of his protest, Dahmen said he had to sign the card. “At that point there is nothing I can do. If I don’t sign the card, a rules official will. I would just be delaying the inevitable.”
Dahmen’s caddie Geno Bonnalie backed up his player, and confirmed the argument on the 10th. “We didn’t agree on the spot where it ‘crossed,'” he said.
Though the Rules of Golf 26-1/15—Procedures for Relief from Lateral Water Hazard allow a player to drop from the last point where the ball rolled into the hazard, Dahmen maintains 26-1/21—Example of Serious Breach of Lateral Water Hazard Rule was at play. But unless video proves Kang wrong, the ruling from the official that allowed Kang to take his drop stands.
The PGA Tour and Dahmen’s representatives have not yet responded to comment on the accusation, while attempts to reach Kang proved unsuccessful. Dahmen, a cancer survivor, has made 14 cuts on tour this season.