Fans are livid with Rory McIlroy seemingly taking too long during a putt attempt, with some claiming the golf star took longer than 10 seconds to approach his ball before it fell into a hole
Rory McIlroy is in hot water with golf fans after a controversial decision during the first day of the Valero Texas Open.
During one of his putt attempts, McIlroy seemingly waited longer than 10 seconds to take a shot after his attempt left the ball hanging on the edge of the hole. According to rule 13.3 as outlined by the USGA, if any part of the ball overhangs the lip of the hole, a golfer is “allowed a reasonable time” to get to the hole and is allowed 1o more seconds to see if the ball will fall into the hole.
Additionally, if the ball falls into the hole during the waiting period, the golfer will have holed out the previous stroke. However, if the ball does not fall during the waiting period, the ball is treated as being at rest.
Should the ball drop before it is played, the golfer will have holed out with the previous stroke but will get a one-stroke penalty added to their score. Many golf fans believe that McIlroy should have been penalised for seemingly taking his time to get to his ball and surpassing the 10-second timer.
“That was 12 seconds,” a fan wrote after seeing the clip of McIlroy’s putt. “More than the allotted 10 seconds. Better go back and assess a one stroke penalty like they did to Austin Eckroat two weeks ago.”
“I mean, I’m all for this counting (because DUH) but pretty sure Si Woo had this happen a couple years ago and was told after 10 seconds that it was a one stroke penalty,” another fan wrote.
By and large, many fans have been noting that the golf star took longer than 10 seconds to get to his ball, with some going even as far as to say that the 34-year-old “cheated.” Still, no definitive time was announced, as many fans debated how long the ball actually stayed on the lip, with guesses ranging from nine to 15 seconds.
At any rate, McIlroy is looking to get back to the level of competition he knows he can compete at. After not playing at the Houston Open or the Valspar Championship due to struggles at The Players, McIlroy revealed he met with Tiger Woods’s former coach Butch Harmon to get back on track.
