2018 US Open: Did Phil Mickelson Cheat or just Use the Rules of Golf to His Advantage?

2018 US Open:   Did Phil Mickelson Cheat or just Use the Rules of Golf to His Advantage?

Interesting dialogue during “TV Golf Watching with Andy’s Golf & Travel Diary” during the third round concerning the antics of Phil Mickelson on the 15^th green. Did he deserve the ‘10’ recorded on the scorecard or disqualification?

Here are is the dialogue and many interesting points of view:

I don’t think Tiger, Jack, Arnold, or ANYONE has ever intentionally hit a moving golf ball like Phil just did! New era for the game!

A very bizarre moment. It’s like he has a mini meltdown.

If Bones was on the bag, Phil’s 81 would have been a 75!

Had intent, think that is cheating!!!

It was definitely intentional: 1.) he ran to the ball as it was moving; 2.) he admitted in interview it was intention

He knew what he was doing. 2 instead of 4 more. Smart man.

So what. He (intentionally or unintentionally) broke the rules and took a penalty. That’s the game.

Cheating implies the intent to not get caught. There was no chance of that happening.

Twitter is really laying into him. Things happen we’re human. I don’t think it was intentional like some are making it to be.

He admitted it was intentional….said he didn’t want to go “back and forth”…..Heck yes it was intentional

Not a bad move if you are trying to keep your score within reason. Better the known than the unknown.

Well that’s kind of sad

Definitely calculated, definitely intentional, definitely cheating… John Daly never had the intent, only to relieve the pain!

So much for trying to be understanding…It does appear the intent to cheat was in play

Ended up taking 5 to get down……missed the moving putt, missed the come-backer, tapped in, add 2….not sure how smart that was. I think he could have gotten down in less than 5 from where the moving ball eventually stopped.

Don’t think he was “intentionally cheating’ either. I think he blew a gasket and is now trying to justify taking 5 to get down form the first missed putt. I call this being a Doofus

I’m split on how I feel about what he did. I am not a Phil fan and no one is bigger than the organization but at the same time, most tournaments would have watered the greens last night and there is usually a little collar around them. An impossible golf course isn’t really fun to watch.

I would cover that bet a 100/1 that he could have gotten it down in less than 5 shots that he spent after hitting the moving ball. Be serious. He had a brain cramp and is now trying to act like he is smarter than everyone by saying the 2-shot penalty was the lessor of two evils. PM is a doofus and sanctimonious. He got caught speeding on this one. Golf course is fine.

Nothing wrong with the course other than the weather & fast fairways & greens. These guys bitch at courses they can’t shoot -10, instead of using their skill & patience. This is a course to test the professional golfer & show how he can adjust & calculate for the weather & course conditions. Not moan & complain like the typical public course hack

How is it “cheating”? Either his emotions took over and he blew up or he was continuously taking advantage of the rules. Cheating is breaking the rules with the intention of not getting caught.

I agree. Though this seemed pretty calculating on his part, he used the rules to save 5 or 6 strokes & stay in the tourney. Sometimes you can use the rules to your advantage but he took the proper strokes & penalty, so he didn’t cheat but it is hard to admit that. If he admits it, everyone will say he cheated, so he is going to take it as it lies.

Breaking the rules is breaking the rules; cheating is when you break the rules knowing that it is to your advantage relative to the field. Something you would do alone and then rationalize and justify that it was the right thing to do! #DQPhilNOW #USOpen

What is the difference in breaking the rules and getting caught; and breaking the rules and not getting caught? Integrity…

Cheat—verb—act dishonestly or unfairly in order to gain an advantage, especially in a game or examination.

2-shot penalty…no DQ – at this point…doubt they would GO BACK and DQ him at this point…

Twitter reports Phil’s response to people questioning what he did: “Toughen Up”.

Would not upset me if they DQ’d him, but I will take “they won’t”, you have “they will” …IMHO, I thought they had grounds once he admitted his intention to breach the rules.

“Taking advantage of the rules”…..it’s his birthday. We should just move on like he is!

I am not a lawyer but it seems to me that the rules make a provision for DQing a player with intent to have advantage when striking a moving ball.

Why not just put rocks on the greens. USGA needs to re-think this debacle. Phil took advantage of the rules. I believe he knows them better than the USGA. He took 2 strokes by rules. Better than 4 more he could have taken. USGA is becoming a joke.

It’s one thing to play it as it lies and utilize knowledge of the rules to your advantage and another thing to intentionally use the rules to lower your score; that’s called cheating!

I don’t think he cheated. He was just pissed. Who cares? He hit a moving ball took two shots and moved on

Isn’t getting the ball in the hole in the fewest strokes possible “using the rules to lower your score”?

I don’t think we need to be discussing this right now… he’s nowhere near contention

I’m not a fan of Phil. I tell you he handled it well. He’s human and nobody knows the true level of his frustration.

His interview was awesome: I’ve wanted to do it many times and I finally did it.

Yeah but it was clearly premeditated… intent… motive was not honorable…. #DQPhilNOW

Those of us who never have known the pressure of these tournaments cannot say what we would do. He used a rule to his advantage. Not illegal! He didn’t cheat IMO. Cheating would be moving a ball to better a shot. Move on people! Phil is a great human being and player of the game

The way they set up US open courses is not as fan friendly, creates many opinions but not as fun to be live as Masters on Sunday with the traditional pins and the boys throwing darts.

AGN always plays tough Thur-Fri and then is set up for scoring for wknd. I think they have figured out how to MASTER the fan experience.

If you’re knowingly going to break the rules Phil, next time just lay your bag down behind the hole. Just fixed your problem!

I think they will soften things up for tomorrow both in texture and areas they put the pins. There were 2-66’s shot out there today. At the Open the greens feed away from the hole, on tour they set the pins where the greens feed to the hole. Tomorrow you’ll see a different course than today!

He took the 2 stroke penalty and moved on. And it has happened just not reported or blatant like Phil. Everything today is caught on camera. I still love Phil.

I thought he threw in the towel.

I thought he demonstrated what the others were feeling.

I think Phil had intent to take advantage by swatting his ball backwards and should be DQ’d as called for in the rules of golf. He could have made a 10 or 12 or who knows what had he finished the hole properly as called for by the rules of golf; i.e. let a moving ball come to a stop and play it as it lies!

He used rules to his advantage. It was an unfair pin… Golf is a game you play the game the best way you see fit.. It’s a game. You don’t have to like or agree with it… He took his penalty for his actions… He did not cheat … my opinion.

I don’t think that Phil will be teeing up at Shinnecock on Sunday…..USGA will reconsider after what he admitted in his interview

D Q Phil, huh

We will see. I love the comment, “He lost his mind”

Phil thinks he is summa cum laude…always has to be the smartest guy in the room when he talks. He could have declared the first putt that got away unplayable. Replayed from where he originally putted and probably saved 3 shots or more. Phil’s explanation about how smart he was in “using the rules” to his advantage was BS….his explanation has huge holes in it. Just saying.

BS because he could have saved himself 2-3 shots if he knew the Rules as well as he says he does…I call BS on his explanation. Declare the first putt unplayable, putt from original spot……any player that really knows the rules would opt for that 100 times out of 101 rather than what he did.

You do know you may declare you ball “unplayable” anywhere, repeat, anywhere on the golf course…including on the putting green. Would that have not made a lot more sense than the debacle he created, he could have saved 2-3 shots….I don’t call that insane.

Oh this should be good… Mike Davis USGA CEO & John Bodenhamer governance guy … more wind than they thought… the greens just think… the hole location on 15… probably too tough this afternoon… Zinger the golf course got away from you…. is the governance guy his bodyguard or is he going to speak too? The wind (on Long Island mind you) caught you off guard. Yeah Buck asks the Phil question…. DQ him now? Rule 32-7…. BS he did not just stop the ball… what video did you review? Will be no DQ Rule 14-5… bunch of lawyers at the USGA! YES Shinnecock Hills is one of the great golf courses! #DQPhilNOW #USOpen

Wind? Who thought there would any wind way out there on the end of Long Island? They have the golf course hooked up to life support now and just hope it can hang on until they get out of there tomorrow and leave Shinnecock to deal with the debacle.

Should be DQ’d on the spot! Total BS. If he has any integrity at all, he’ll WD. They all played the same course, but the later guys played a much tougher course. Yesterday, the early guys had it much tougher. DJ has played in brutal conditions 2 days in a row.

They have 10 years to get prepared for hosting a U.S. Open…they can study weather patterns, prevailing winds, rain averages, everything, everything they need to know about what may happened during the week the event is scheduled. and the USGA can screw it up in a New York heart beat….they need to clean house …..hire some professionals to set up and run the events.

I just hope the golf course gets through the night. It is on life support now.