A 7-year-old golfer from Spain just gave us all a lesson in good sportsmanship and honesty.
Yago Horno Mateo recently won a junior event in his native Andalucia region with a nine-hole score of 50. However, once he had returned home, he realized he had made a math mistake. He had actually shot 51 and hadn't won after all.
Doing the right thing, Mateo penned a letter to the Royal Andalusia Golf Federation to let him know of his mistake, disqualifying himself because his father told him that signing for a lower score was a violation of the Rules of Golf.
Here's a picture of the letter the boy wrote, via the Daily Mail:
And here's a rough translation:
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Hi,
I'm Yago Horno Mateo and my golf license is AM9616788.
On Saturday, March 12, I played in a tournament on Corela Island, which resulted in a score I submitted of 50 strokes.
Looking back on my scorecard with my father, I scored on my card on stroke less. The true score was 51. My father told me that to sign your scorecare in error for less strokes is a disqualification.
I'm giving back the trophy for my competitors who deserve it.
I under that I needed to revise my results before signing my scorecard.
[/mks_pullquote]
Pretty awesome stuff, kid.