Reed feeling great after latest rules controversy
PATRICK REED insisted he made a “textbook” call and felt “great” after being involved in another rules controversy at the Farmers Insurance Open.
Reed benefited from a controversial ruling on the parfour 10th at Torrey Pines when he hit a 190-yard shot out of a bunker, with a TV replay showing the ball bounced once before settling into the rough.
Believing the ball did not bounce, Reed picked it up to see if it was embedded before a rules official arrived.
The American, who was penalised two strokes for appearing to deliberately improve his lie in a bunker at the Tiger Woods’ Hero World Challenge in December 2019, was awarded a free drop and saved par.
“The ball just disappeared. None of us saw it bounce,” Reed said, adding that a volunteer also said it did not bounce. “I looked at my group and said, ‘Guys, she didn’t see it bounce it, either, so I’m going to mark this ball and see if it’s embedded.’
“When I put my finger down there and felt like it has broken ground, the first thing you do is call the rules official. The rules official said, ‘Yes, there’s a lip here, it definitely broke the plane.’ It’s an embedded ball, you get a club length and take a drop, and at that point we did exactly what we were supposed to do.”
Reed said he was approached by the rules official after completing his two-under round of 70, which gave him a share of the lead with Mexican Carlos Ortiz
“He had his phone out and shows us the video,” Reed said. “He said ‘I just want to let you know what you’ve done here in the whole procedure was textbook, it was perfect.’
“It’s an unfortunate situation obviously… but when you’re told that you’ve done this perfectly, you did this the exact right way... you know, I feel great about it.”