The following ruling was issued by the PGA of America Rule Committee:
Garrick Higgo, from South Africa, was penalized two-strokes for being late to the tee (7:18 am Tee #1) during round one of the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania.
Higgo was on the practice putting green but was not within the area defined as the starting point at his starting time.
The PGA of America’s Local Rules and Terms of the Competition states the following with regard to defining the starting point of a round:
8. Starting Point Defined: For the purpose of applying Rule 5.3a, the starting point for hole #1 and hole #10 is defined by the rope, gallery stakes, green bike fencing and/or blue stakes, blue dots or blue lines.
With regard to when a player is late to the tee, Rule 5.3 states in part:
a. When to Start Round
A player’s round starts when the player makes a stroke to start their first hole (see Rule 6.1a).
The player must start at (and not before) their starting time:
- This means that the player must be ready to play at the starting time and starting point set by the Committee.
- A starting time set by the Committee is treated as an exact time (for example, 9 am means 9:00:00 am, not any time until 9:01 am).
Penalty for Breach of Rule 5.3a: Disqualification, with three exceptions (see exception 1 below):
- Player Arrives at Starting Point, Ready to Play, No More Than Five Minutes Late: The player gets the general penalty applied to their first hole.
