Rory McIlroy was having trouble finding his golf ball on the third hole on Friday in the second round of the 2020 PGA Championship. He couldn't find it on his own, and there was a bit of a search party looking on his behalf.
Then a media member who was part of the search party accidentally stepped on the ball as he was looking for it.
Under the Rules of Golf instituted in 2019, McIlroy wouldn't be penalized for accidentally stepping on his ball, nor would he have been for someone else unrelated to his team stepping on his ball. He would be entitled to relief to drop the ball where it was, all in an effort to recreate the lie he had before someone stepped on his ball.
Class act: reporter accidentally stepped on @McIlroyRory’s ball in 3rd green search, official Mark Dusbabek allows him to place, Rory isn’t comfortable with the lie because it’s too good. Resets it lower in rough. Makes bogey. @PGAChampionship pic.twitter.com/C8xXOXFSmu
— Geoff Shackelford (@GeoffShac) August 7, 2020
McIlroy figured the lie he got was too good -- unfair to the field and not resembling what it probably looked like before it was disturbed. So, he did the classy thing and nestled the ball further down in the rough to give himself a worse lie.
He made bogey.
