[Byxtysaaqwuz]

...I give him credit for this.

AKRON, Ohio (AP)—Tiger Woods won the Bridgestone Invitational with an 8-iron that stopped a foot from the cup on the 16th hole and a 5-under 65. He believes Padraig Harrington lost because of a stopwatch.

Even after his 70th career victory, Woods was upset Sunday that he and Harrington were told on the pivotal 16th hole that they would be put on the clock for being out of the position from the group ahead of them.

Harrington, while not blaming the slow-play policy, conceded that he was rushed out during a series of shots in the rough on his way to making a triple bogey, going from a one-shot lead to a three-shot deficit.

Woods was more direct in his comments to the Irishman as they shook hands on the 18th green.

“Like I was telling him out there, ‘I’m sorry that John got in the way of a great battle,’ because it was such a great battle for 16 holes,” Woods said. “And unfortunately, that happened.”

John Paramor, chief referee for the PGA European Tour, made no apologies for playing the rules.

He said the final pairing was 13 minutes over their time limit after 11 holes and could have been put on the clock, except that J.B. Holmes well ahead of them was struggling on the 16th with various rulings.

“We thought that would allow them to get back into position on the golf course, but they ended up playing the 13th and 14th poorly, and the 15th was not too quick, either.”

When they reached the 16th green, Paramor said Woods and Harrington were 17 minutes behind schedule.
“The 16th hole had opened up before they cleared the 15th green,” he said. “And therefore, we had no choice but to put them on the clock at that stage.”

When players take more than the allotted time while on the clock—40 seconds, with an additional 20 seconds for the first player to hit each of the shots toward the green—they are given a warning. A second bad time leads to a $5,000 fine and a one-shot penalty.
The last player penalized a shot for slow play on the PGA Tour was Dillard Pruitt at the 1982 Byron Nelson Classic.

Woods said the stopwatch led to Harrington rushing his shots, none of them very good.

First came a 5-iron from the right trees that he pulled into the collar of a bunker. Then came a shot from 159 yards that went over the green, followed by the crucial play—a flop shot that came out hot and went into the water.

“He had to get in there quickly and hit it,” Woods said. “That was a shot you don’t want to get in there quickly and hit. You want to take your time and figure out exactly what you want to do. And I think by rushing like he had to, it forced him to make a couple mistakes.” The PGA should be ashamed that they'd let a clock become a factor in the deciding of a semi-major championship.

[bebeacc]

...I give him credit for this.

The PGA should be ashamed that they'd let a clock become a factor in the deciding of a semi-major championship.

It's too bad that it happened, but those are the rules. They were 17 minutes out of position and they have to play by the same rules as the rest of the field, even if they are the last group. It is a fair rule.

Harrington:
“If you’re asking a player two or three groups ahead of the lead to play within a certain time frame, it’s unfair to give the leaders any leeway.”

[geaveheadeNox]

I mean, who else were they waiting on? Why were they being rushed?

Did CBS want to get golf off the TV so they can get into "Survivor" in time?

[cut sifted ephedra sinica]

I mean, who else were they waiting on? Why were they being rushed?

Did CBS want to get golf off the TV so they can get into "Survivor" in time?

Golf ended right on time, I'm not sure what the big deal is. It's golf, it takes a while to play.

[DoniandaCoado]

It's too bad that it happened, but those are the rules. They were 17 minutes out of position and they have to play by the same rules as the rest of the field, even if they are the last group. It is a fair rule.

Harrington:
“If you’re asking a player two or three groups ahead of the lead to play within a certain time frame, it’s unfair to give the leaders any leeway.”

It really is one of the best things about golf. They have strict rules and even the "star" players have to bide by those rules, even going so far as to penalize themselves for touching the ball, hitting it twice, etc, even if nobody else sees it. If only all other sports could teach this the way golf does.