DUBLIN, Ohio – Another week on the PGA Tour must mean there is another rules snafu. The good news for Bubba Watson is this time there was no violation.
Officials took notice when Watson, who is leading the Memorial Tournament by a stroke after a third-round 69, appeared to touch his golf ball while preparing to hit his fourth shot at the 18th hole.
“It looked like he may have just touched it, but the ball didn’t move,” said Slugger White, a vice president of rules and competition for the Tour.
Under Rule 18-2a, a player can touch a golf ball at address as long as the ball doesn’t move out of its original position, which Watson’s did not.
After a brief review, officials informed Watson there was no violation.
“The scoring guy said that my club touched the ball and I said, ‘No, it didn’t.’ It didn’t even come close,” Watson said. “The camera angle looks like that. (Paul Casey, who was paired with Watson on Saturday) verified it.”
