Ben Crane Cites Scripture, Writings Of Davis Love In Self-DQ

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If only the feelings of guilt weighing on Ben Crane were as strong when self-reflecting on his daily golf course rudeness, better known as his glacial pace of play!

At least in disqualifying himself over a hazard grounding only he witnessed, Crane has indicated he is capable of feeling guilty. Just not about being the least considerate golfer on the PGA Tour.

It's a start!

Regarding his Shriners Hospital Open DQ, Crane cites the biblical interpretations of Davis Love on playersdevotional.com.

 The writings of Captain Love, should Ben Crane ever decide to take them to heart in the slow play department.

Ko Struggles To 75 After Taking Controversial Unplayable

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Lydia Ko is donating her earnings in this week's Volunteers of America North Texas Shootout to earthquake relief for Nepal, so her opening 75 no doubt upset someone not used to posting big scores.

And the round came with a controversial drop, as Randall Mell explains.

Ko was 2 under par in her round when she hit her approach shot at the 14th hole long and left. She tried to hit a lob over a tree blocking her route to the green, but her ball caught up in a branch and never came down.

With Hamilton in the tree, Ko asked why they had to free the ball if they were going to take an unplayable.

“We have to identify it,” Hamilton told her.

Shortly after, LPGA rules official Brad Alexander arrived. He told Ko she could take an unplayable lie based on witness accounts of the ball going into the tree. She took a penalty stroke and a drop near the tree. If the ball had been declared lost, Ko would have been required to take a penalty and also return to where she struck the last shot. She would have had to drop and play from there.

Caddie Jason Hamilton's climbing effort, while noble, didn't quiet some grumbling on social media about the attempts to shake the ball loose and the unplayable lie verdict.

The LPGA rules staff held firm to their conclusion according to a statement to GolfChannel.com.

The officials involved in the ruling with Lydia Ko today on the 14th hole referenced Decision 27/12 to support their ruling. Due to the fact that it was roughly a 30-yard shot, the spectators were able to see Lydia’s ball from start to finish and therefore provided indisputable evidence that the ball in the tree was indeed Lydia’s ball. Therefore the ball did not need to be identified as it was never lost. The USGA confirmed that in a situation where observers indisputably saw the player’s ball in motion come to rest in a specific location at which the ball remains visible, the ball has been identified as the player’s ball. Thus, since the ball in the tree was deemed as Lydia's ball, she was then able to proceed under Rule 28 – Ball Unplayable.

Here is the entire sequence:

The Cameron Tringale DQ Fleshed Out...

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Interesting stuff in this reporting by Bob Harig on last week's DQ of Cameron Tringale a week after the PGA. Tringale changed his mind on a final round situation at the 11th hole where he whiffed a tap-in.

Harig quotes both Tringale and playing partner Matt Jones, who it turns out, saw the whiff and brought it up after the round. Tringale said there was no intent and the issue died. Until Tringale slept (or didn't) on the matter:

"I asked him what he had on No. 11 because we all saw what happened," Jones said after his round Thursday at Ridgewood. "Did you not make a stroke at that ball? He said there was no intent and once a player says there is no intent to make a stroke, I just left it at that and I signed the scorecard.

"When a player says there is no intent, you have to take his credibility and trust him. And he doesn't have any type of reputation to think otherwise or question him for that."

Jones said he was surprised when he learned Tringale had disqualified himself. "I thought it was over and done with as soon as he signed his card," Jones said.