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It’s time for another edition of ‘Golf Rules That Suck’.

The star of today’s show? Aussie pro John Senden.

The two-time PGA Tour winner’s driver shaft snapped in the MIDDLE of his swing as he teed off on the par-5 ninth at during the opening round of the Australian PGA Championship at Royal Pines, causing him to whiff the ball.

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Check out the video below…

Here it is from another angle…

It looks like the shaft actually broke inside the grip.

Senden did well to escape a nasty injury. What he didn’t escape was the good old rules of golf.

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Despite the shaft snapping, the stroke counted.

Not only that, he was told that he’d have to play his second shot with the ball teed up high… despite not having the use of his driver.

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As you can hear from this clip, Senden’s playing partner, former US Open champion Geoff Ogilvy, was rather unimpressed.

To Senden’s credit, he managed to get out of the hole with nothing worse than bogey and ultimately signed for a level-par 72.


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Michael McEwan is the Deputy Editor of bunkered and has been part of the team since 2004. In that time, he has interviewed almost every major figure within the sport, from Jack Nicklaus, to Rory McIlroy, to Donald Trump. The host of the multi award-winning bunkered Podcast and a member of Balfron Golfing Society, Michael is the author of three books and is the 2023 PPA Scotland 'Writer of the Year' and 'Columnist of the Year'. Dislikes white belts, yellow balls and iron headcovers. Likes being drawn out of the media ballot to play Augusta National.

Deputy Editor

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