Welcome to the third part of our “Confidential Caddy” Serieswith monthly perspectives from dozens of Tour caddies on rotating golf topics. On the agenda this month: cheating on the PGA Tour. Is this a problem? According to the caddies we interviewed – who remained anonymous – this happens more often than people think.
There can be a gray area when it comes to cheating and interpretation of the rules. But one thing is certain: no golfer wants to be called a cheater, especially on the PGA Tour.
“There is a slight difference between blatant cheating and bending rules when it comes to relief and when a ball crosses a danger line,” one cadet told us. “Blatant cheating is very rare.”
Professional golfers who break the rules might play a bigger role than you think. Cadets cited where balls are released near side obstacles as the most common area where rules are circumvented.
Pure and simple cheating? Cadets admit it’s rare.
But we were curious to know: Do cadets have stories to share about cheating, based on their own experiences?
So we asked…
Are there any examples or stories related to cheating that you can share from your experiences?
Check out this selection of shopping cart responses:
No.
There are none directly in front of me. I just hear the stories.
I haven’t seen anyone get away with a serious rule infraction. I remember a situation where a player was arguing heatedly about where he should be able to drop his ball. He had hit his ball into a side hazard from the tee. The ball last crossed the danger line about 80-90 yards from the tee, but he insisted it crossed about 230-240 yards. He finally accepted that no one would agree with him, but man, he was pissed. I didn’t talk to anyone for the last seven holes. The funny thing is, he wasn’t going to qualify anyway.
Nothing that hasn’t already been documented in the golf media.
I’ve seen players get relief from obstructions or sprinkler heads that weren’t warranted.
People take bad drops.
I have seen players in a difficult state when identifying the ball while pressing on the grass around the ball to “identify” it, which creates a better lie.
Many years ago there was a case in Reno where a player couldn’t find his ball, then ran out of time and said he found it, but it had a different marking than the one he uses. He said he changed his marking. The cut line was also changed that week.
Not really. I would be uncomfortable detailing them.
Marking is a problem for many players. And obvious bad falls are allowed too often.
I would love to tell this story (everyone knows it), but I will be sued and it’s no joke.
I saw a player drop his piece while marking his ball. The coin hit the ball, the ball moved closer to the hole. He ignored the fact that the ball had moved closer to the hole and was removed.
I’m not a rat.
Call me.
Bullets crossing red lines are always exaggerated by some.
I witnessed a situation where a player placed a marker for his ball on the side of the ball located on the low side of the hole whenever a short putt was involved. He would then place his ball in front of the marker. This resulted in a straighter putt to the hole. He was caught by both playing partners and confronted in the goal zone. Rules officials imposed penalty strokes for each occurrence and the player moved from T4 to 37th place. That’s the only time I witnessed cheating, and it wasn’t on the PGA Tour.
There is a slight difference between the blatant cheating and evasion rules when it comes to clearing and crossing a danger line. Blatant cheating is very rare.
Most “cheating” is done by taking drops or determining where a ball entered a penalty area, usually water.
Most of what I’ve seen is guys trying to take a favorable drop to get a ball through an obstacle.
Each time a player hits a ball into a hazard, they try to determine where it last crossed the hazard. The player (who hit the shot) always has the best “angle”, but he always seems to ask the other members of the group “hoping” that they will let them get closer to the hole.
Want to hear more from our March 2021 episode of Caddy Confidential? Be sure to check if cheating is really a problem on the PGA Touras well as how many pros cheat and how to crack down on it.
You can consult all the results of our entire Confidential Caddy by clicking here.
