Mackenzie Hughes was in contention at the Scottish Open, but his chances of making a move up the leaderboard were scuppered before he even hit his first shot on Saturday.
Mackenzie Hughes, a prominent PGA Tour player, made a significant golfing mistake by showing up late for his tee time at the Scottish Open on Saturday.
The Canadian golfer had a strong position going into the weekend at The Renaissance Club in North Berwick, with a score of eight-under-par, trailing leader Ludvig Aberg by four shots. However, Hughes’ third round began poorly when he arrived late to the tee. Scheduled to tee off at 2.45pm with Denmark’s Ryder Cup star Nicolai Hojgaard, officials quickly notified the two-time PGA Tour winner of his tardiness.
This resulted in a two-shot penalty for the 33-year-old, hindering his chances of climbing the leaderboard. Despite making par on the opening hole, it was recorded as a double-bogey six on the scorecard due to the penalty.
Sky Sports reported the news to its audience, and former PGA Championship winner Rich Beem was taken aback by Hughes’ lack of punctuality, especially since the practice green is right next to the first tee at The Renaissance Club.
To his credit, Hughes was able to quickly compose himself and scored birdies on holes three, six, and 10 to go under par for the day. However, he slipped up at the 12th, dropping back to eight-under. He finished the round one-under for the day and nine-under for the tournament, trailing leader Aberg by seven shots.
Hughes’ mistake may have not only jeopardized his chances of winning the title but also had a significant impact on his finances. Currently tied for 19th place, he is set to earn around £60,000, but a slightly higher position on the leaderboard could result in earnings of over £80,000.
Hughes is not the only one facing difficulties with his tee time; he is part of a group of golfers who have made mistakes with their schedules, although he is in the minority when it comes to facing consequences. One such story is Rory McIlroy’s well-known rush, which involved a police escort to the 2012 Ryder Cup after a mix-up with time zones. Despite the rush, McIlroy remained composed and secured a crucial point for Europe in what became known as “The Miracle at Medinah.”
Earlier this year, Tom Kim narrowly avoided a late penalty at The Genesis Invitation. Teed off at 8am with Rickie Fowler, Kim lost track of time while practicing putts and had to rush through fans to avoid a two-stroke penalty.
Looking back on the incident, Kim mentioned, “We had 27 minutes left when we arrived at the putting green, but it felt like only 15 minutes had passed,” and he was surprised to hear he had just one minute left to tee off. Thanks to his quick sprint, he managed to finish the final round with a respectable two-under-par, tying for 24th place in Los Angeles.
I found myself on the far end of the green. If I hadn’t made it in time for the announcement, I would have received a two-shot penalty and ended up shooting even par instead of two-under today. I made sure to be punctual, and just 10 to 15 seconds later, they called for the tee. I was lucky. I always make it a point to be on time for tee times.
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