BETHESDA, Md. — It probably won’t cost Webb Simpson a tournament this time.
Still, he must be wondering what he did to get on the wrong side of the golf gods.
Simpson’s early round of 5-under-par 66 at the U.S. Open on Saturday included a penalty stroke when his ball moved after he addressed it with his putter on the 13th green. It was the same penalty he took seven weeks ago at the Zurich Open in New Orleans.
“I addressed the ball, and the ball moved about a half-inch, quarter-inch,” Simpson said. “I think we’ve been through this too many times, hadn’t we? But it was kind of the same deal as New Orleans. It was unfortunate, but I think it really made me committed to try to finish strong, and I made a couple of good birdies coming in.”
Simpson said it was his third time receiving such a penalty as a pro. It also happened to him once while playing at Wake Forest.
But it was the misfortune at Zurich that might lead to a change in the rules of golf. He was leading by a shot and heading for a tap-in on the 15th hole in the final round, but the ball moved as he addressed it on the green. He wound up taking a penalty and finished in a tie with Bubba Watson, who beat Simpson in the playoff.
The U.S. Golf Association and the Royal and Ancient are looking into changing the rule so that the golfer isn’t penalized if it can be proved the ball was moved by an outside force. But it was still in effect at the Open, which cost Simpson a stroke.
