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The three-times European Ryder Cup member
missed the chance for a "mulligan" -- golf terminology for a
free shot -- when his short bogey putt horseshoed around the
hole and hit his foot.
Rather than replaying the putt without penalty from its original
spot, Parnevik instead tapped the ball in from where it ended up
for what he thought was a double-bogey, only to find out later
that the rules actually require a re-do.
The incident happened at the third hole during the final round
of the SAS Championship on the 50-and-over Champions Tour.
"When a ball on the putting green accidentally hits any person,
animal or immovable obstruction, this stroke does not count and
the ball must be replaced on its original spot," rules official
Brian Claar told Reuters.
"Jesper tapped it in. In that situation he's played from the
wrong place. Unfortunately he gets a two-stroke penalty for
playing from the wrong place, and the one where he tapped in
counts but the original stroke does not count."
Which added up to a triple-bogey.
If that sounds a lot to take in, you are not alone.
On-site officials were so unfamiliar with the obscure rule that
they phoned the U.S. Golf Association for clarification, and
were told such a situation had never occurred in a professional
tournament to their knowledge.
"They said 'did that really happen out there'?," said Claar, who
described the incident among the strangest he had encountered.
"He actually gets a mulligan," Claar said. "It's strange you get
a do-over because there's (generally) no such thing as a do-over
unless you hit a power line or something. He should have put it
back and tried again."
Parnevik finished equal 68th in the tournament won by American
Jerry Kelly at Prestonwood Country Club.
(Reporting by Andrew Both; editing by Richard Pullin)
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