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Rotten ricochet
Fluke penalty results in killing triple for Maggert
Posted: Sunday April 13, 2003 3:57 PM
Updated: Sunday April 13, 2003 5:53 PM
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The ball bounces off Jeff Maggert's chest after hitting the face of the bunker on the third hole during final round play of the 2003 Masters at the Augusta National Golf Club. AP |
AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) -- Jeff Maggert's second shot out of a bunker
ricocheted off the lip and hit him in the chest, a rare two-stroke
penalty that quickly dropped him out of the lead Sunday in the
Masters.
Maggert, who started the final round with a two-stroke lead, hit
into the fairway bunker on the 350-yard third hole. His approach
slammed into the edge and bounced right back at him, settling in
the sand.
He immediately called the penalty on himself and asked for a
rules official to confirm.
Rule 19-2b states: "If a competitor's ball is accidentally
deflected or stopped by himself ... [he] shall incur a penalty of
two strokes."
Maggert hit his next shot onto the back fringe of the green,
chipped through the green, then holed an 18-foot putt for a triple
bogey, dropping him two strokes out of the lead.
It was reminiscent of other bizarre penalties in major
championships.
Ian Woosnam had a share of the lead going into the final round
of the 2001 British Open. He birdied the first hole, only to
discover he had 15 clubs in his bag -- an extra driver -- and was
penalized two strokes. He finished four shots behind David Duval.
One of the most famous came in the final round of the 1985 U.S.
Open at Oakland Hills. T.C. Chen of Taiwan was leading by four
shots when he chipped out of deep rough and his club struck the
ball again -- a one-stroke penalty.
He made 8 on the hole and finished one stroke behind Andy
North.
Copyright 2003 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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