A day after a controversial penalty was issued to Shane Lowry, two former major champions, Henrik Stenson and Bryson DeChambeau, have criticised the R&A’s approach to slow play at the Open after being spoken to by rules officials in separate incidents during round three.
Day one at Royal Portrush saw three balls take close to six hours. “First two rounds it was out of control, what I saw,” said DeChambeau.
By Saturday, with players in pairs, that had been reduced generally to little more than four hours. Groups involving Stenson and DeChambeau, though, were still warned over timing. Stenson admitted he “vented” to referees after signing for a 69.
“We got a warning on the 10th green that we were three minutes out, so five minutes over the allotted time frame,” said the 2016 Open winner. “I had joked yesterday with the other guys about the first two days, first round took about an hour over the allotted time. Second round was four to five minutes over. I said: ‘We just have to wait until halfway through Saturday or Sunday and someone is going to come up to you and say that you’re two minutes over and they’re going to start pushing you on.’ That’s exactly what happened.
“I think if you can play an hour over time scheduled in one day, then all of a sudden two minutes is of huge importance the next day, it feels a bit inconsistent to me.”
DeChambeau was similarly baffled. After a 68, the two-time major winner confirmed his pairing had been put on the clock on the 17th. “I was moving my butt as fast as I could,” he said. “Greens were really tricky. I was trying to read them right.
“It’s very simple. It’s not difficult at all. You eventually time everybody for their whole entire round. Very simple. Nobody wants to do it because people are too scared to get exposed, which I am an advocate for. I’d love to be timed, and I have no problem with that. My putting, I’m more deliberate, take more time on that, but when it comes to iron shots, off the tee, I’m pretty fast.
“Everybody plays a different style of game and that’s just the way it is. I wish it was just a new system. I think it would be more fair towards everybody. If somebody is playing slower, the guy can go up to him and say: ‘Hey, man, you’re over par with your time.’ All you do is you just time them for every single shot. He gets there and puts the bag down, and how long it takes him to hit that shot and how long it takes him to walk to the green. It’s not rocket science.”
Lowry was unwilling to delve back in to the controversy that saw him hit with a two-shot sanction late on Friday. The Irishman did say fellow players have been supportive. “Something needs to be changed for sure,” said Jon Rahm of the rule which Lowry fell foul of. Lowry was adamant on Friday he did not see his ball roll backwards in rough at the 12th hole during a practice swing, with officials determining he was in breach. “I just don’t know exactly how they could change it.”
