The Web.com Tour season got underway this week in the Bahamas and there was a huge controversy surrounding a player, his caddie and the Rules of Golf.
Golfer Launches Headcover At Caddie After Rules Blunder, Caddie Fights Back
Australian Rhein Gibson was coming down the par-5 18th hole one behind the lead needing a birdie to force a playoff or an eagle to win the Bahamas Great Abaco Classic.
He had 245 metres with his second shot and pulled it left into a hazard.
What followed was quite extraordinary.
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Gibson’s caddie, Brandon Davis – who has since been fired, found the ball wedged in between two rocks in a hazard with the help of a rules official and Gibson uttered an expletive, leading Davis to believe his player was not going to attempt to play it.
Davis then picked the ball up, assuming he and Gibson were taking a drop, before the rules official handed Gibson a one-stroke penalty for moving a ball that was still in play.
That penalty was on top of the penalty drop that Rhein Gibson eventually took from the hazard.
Gibson dropped it out and chipped it up to tap-in range for bogey, before throwing his putter headcover at his caddie.
Watch the video here:
And…… you’re fired. @ShooterMcGavin_ #WebTour pic.twitter.com/h3qHWGl5L3
— TurtleTakes (@TurtleTakes) January 24, 2018
Instead of finishing in a tie for 2nd place, Gibson ended 3rd and ultimately lost out on $12,000.
Gibson later apologised on Twitter:
Unfortunately my caddy was involved with a ruling on the 18th that caused me to fall from t2 to 3rd. My actions were less then professional and I apologize to my caddy and those that took offense to my behaviors.
— Rhein Gibson (@RheinGibson55) January 24, 2018
But that wasn’t the end of it. Davis fought back, replying with:
But what’s more, it turns out that the rules official may have falsely given out that one stroke penalty.
That’s because of Rule 26-1/9 on caddies lifting balls out of water hazards without their player’s authority.
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The rule states:
“Q. A player’s ball lying in a water hazard is lifted by the player’s caddie without the player’s authority. What is the ruling?
A. There is no penalty under Rule 18-2 if there was no doubt or it was reasonable to assume from the player’s actions or statements that he would make his next stroke from outside the water hazard.”
I was the caddy… the rules official screwed up, nothing wrong with what I did. Decision 26.1/9. Unfortunate all around.
— Brandon Davis (@bdavistwo) January 25, 2018
Davis says that his player walked away in disgust after seeing the ball, and therefore it is reasonable to assume from the player’s actions that he would make his next stroke from outside the water.
The sacked caddie then took to YouTube to explain the situation:
“Did he throw a headcover at me? Yes,” he said.
“Did he fire me on the spot? Yes!
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“Did he have a reason to? yes…until i found this!
“I got fired today on national television.
“Because I did something that I did not think was wrong and it wasn’t wrong, I have to defend myself and I’m doing it because I believe in the truth.”
Davis also explains in the video of his certainty that both he and Gibson knew that there would be no way of playing the ball.
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He also tweeted: “No explanation or apology from the tour yet. I’ll update if I hear anything.”
Watch Gibson’s YouTube explanation of the situation here:
Canadian Adam Svensson eventually won the title by a stroke.
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