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Golf Channel analyst Brandel Chamblee says the USGA has ‘lost a lot of trust from the golf world’ after another controversial championship at Shinnecock Hills.
Players ripped into the organisation after Saturday’s round, claiming the USGA had ‘lost’ the golf course after carnage-filled day.
There was also the Phil Mickelson situation, where the five-time major winner was handed a two-stroke penalty for putting a moving ball and, despite calls for him to be disqualified, the penalty was deemed to be a sufficient punishment.
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Not sure how Championship Sunday will top Saturday’s madness when the greens were slicker than Pita Taufatofua’s chest and slappy Philmore lost his mind, but we are one day further with heat, wind, slopes, bumpy greens and nerves. The whole devil is in the room now.
— Brandel Chamblee (@chambleebrandel) June 17, 2018
Admittedly, the course did improve for the final day – where Brooks Koepka edged out Tommy Fleetwood to go back-to-back at the championship for the first time since Curtis Strange in 1988 and 1989 – but the set-up on Saturday seriously compromised the integriy of the competition.
“Something was amiss in a big, big way at Shinnecock Hills,” said Chamblee. “I think the USGA has lost a lot of trust of the golf world. They’ve done it for numerous reasons.
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“On their watch, there have been huge mistakes in major
championships. We well know this one was a colossal mistake all the way
across the board. The golf course was bumpy the first day; they didn’t
quite get that right. It was awful the third day. And today, in a
different kind of way, it was far too easy.
“And then there’s penalties that they levy that make absolutely no
sense, penalties that they don’t levy – not disqualifying Phil Mickelson
yesterday.
“There seems to be no obvious leadership, you know, to me. No obvious leadership heading in the right direction.”
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