So, was Sergio right....?

[Siren]

3 days on I still have no idea if he was right or not.

I would have thought if he took too long on his drop he would have been penalized by the match official, however the circumstances were among the strangest I have ever seen.

 

[Jack_bfc]

I have a problem with the whole 'gimme' thing...

If its not a time taking issue then the purpose of the game of golf is to put the ball into the hole..

Im fairly new to competition golf and have never played matchplay competitvley. When mates give me a put in a bounce game I will still put it out and if I miss then its my bad.

Unless its busy and we are holding up play. Then I understand it.

 

[USER1999]

He was wrong. If you had money on him with the bookies, you'd be livid.

 

[bluewolf]

We all know that golf is played "between the ears" and if he had something bugging him it was probably wise to get it out of his system and play the rest of the round with a clear head. Also, it's difficult to tell how the putts matched up in terms of difficulty from the TV. Yes Fowler was futher away but that's not always the key factor. He must have had his reasons and I believe he's played a bit before so I'd trust he knows what he's doing on a golf course. I don't feel qualified to judge if he was right or wrong, only he will know that.

Yup.. That's my thoughts on the matter. It was obviously playing on his mind, and he wanted to make amends for what he thought was a overly lengthy delay on the previous hole. Rather than flaying him, maybe a thought for the fact that golf is a sport that encourages such gentlemanly conduct....

If I had money on him I'd be furious though...

 

[JustOne]

IMO he was right. You can do what you like (especially in singles) and if something was bugging him then he did the right thing. The fact that he then went to lose from 3up is what he needs to be concerned about.

 

[Airlie_Andy]

I'm probably in the minority but if I was in Fowlers position I wouldn't have accepted the concession from Sergio until I'd made perfectly clear that the delay wasn't a problem from my point of view otherwise I would feel like I was gaining an unfair advantage from someone who was trying to be a gentleman.

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

I'm probably in the minority but if I was in Fowlers position I wouldn't have accepted the concession from Sergio until I'd made perfectly clear that the delay wasn't a problem from my point of view otherwise I would feel like I was gaining an unfair advantage from someone who was trying to be a gentleman.

I absolutely get where you are coming from but on your 'I wouldn't have accepted ...' comment - remember (as I am sure you know but just for those who might not) you can't refuse a concession no matter what

 

[Doon frae Troon]

This is none of our business, Sergio can do as he wishes.
It is not for us to judge if he is 'wrong or right'.

 

[Deleted member 15344]

I was extremely happy to see Sergio concede that putt

It showed me that the respect and general gentleman ettiqute is still alive and well in our sport

You would struggle to see such wonderful sportsmanship in many other sports

There is no right or wrong though

Big thumbs up to Sergio

 

[MegaSteve]

I am sure it won't have changed Tiger's opinion of him...

 

[kennethwest]

I think they get along really well off course and this potentially clouded sergio's judegement in this case.

He probably wouldnt have been so gentlemanly with Tiger for example

 

[SwingsitlikeHogan]

This is none of our business, Sergio can do as he wishes.
It is not for us to judge if he is 'wrong or right'.

Quite.

 

[bladeplayer]

This one stumped me a bit , so il tell ya what i think , i think Sergio was confident he would win so he offered it , I dont think he would have if he was losing ..

i like to think i would do what I thought was the right thing in match play singles if we were having a good mannered battle i just might have offered aswell , i wouldnt know unless i was in that position ,
But in matchplay team i would have to consider my team mates first and just play it as it is and play that scenario out .. he would be putting

 

[Hickory_Hacker]

Garcia needs some decent press.

 

[6inchcup]

i think he did the right thing if it was playing on his mind,some on these pages forget golf is a game of honour with rules of golf as well as a code of etiquette,he never breach the rules but he felt he had breached the etiquette rules and had put his opponent in a disadvantage with the time it took on his drop on the previous hole.I have given putts from 10ft in matches for a half when the situation calls for it i would sooner win fair and square than take advantage of someone's misadventure,everyone should play the game in the spirit it should be played.

 

[Bratty]

Would Faldo or Tiger do something like this? Would Schumacher allow a competitor back through on the next corner if he caused them to lose position? Not a chance in hell.

Stephen Hendry once said when I have an opponent down I step on their throat! Phil Taylor would be exactly the same.

Seem to remember Seve accidently coughing while an opponent putted. He apologised and suggested the putt was retaken, which his oppenent declined. Think he missed the return and Seve's caddy said, "we should offer him that as a retake", to which Seve replied, "I gave him a chance and 1 is all he gets".

Pretty sure I've misquoted that horribly, but the gist is there. Even a golfer at the top of his game can make a magnanimous gesture (although Seve wouldn't have gone on to lose!). Paulo DiCanio once caught a ball in the 90th minute instead of volleying it into the net when Everton's keeper was injured, with the game at 1-1. Again, killer instinct versus "fair play" (although Redknapp was rumoured to be livid in the dressing room afterwards!).

Wonderful that Sergio offered, but JustOne is correct (for once) in his assertion that the concern shouldn't be if he was right or wrong to concede the putt, but whiy he lost.

 

[FairwayDodger]

I think it was weird. The drop at the previous hole didn't even take that long, under the circumstances. There was just no need for him to do that. Credit, I suppose, for good intentions but misguided in this case.