Welcome to FTW Explains, a guide to catching up on and better understanding stuff going on in the world. Did you hear about a possible Masters 2023 rule violation involving Brooks Koepka and a caddie in the first round? And you’re confused about it? No worries. We’re here to help.
Among the names at the top of the Masters leaderboard after Round 1 in Augusta in 2023 was Brooks Koepka, the four-time major winner who left the PGA Tour for LIV Golf.
Masters Leaderboard: Live leaderboard, schedule, tee times
But there was some controversy after his round thanks to a video that circulated. Was there a reason to give him a penalty that would have knocked him out of the names of first-round leaders tied for first?
Let’s dive in:
What happened here?
Video began circulating late Thursday of Koepka hitting a shot, and then his caddie mouthing something at his counterpart holding the bag for Gary Woodland:
So much of the LIV players being treated poorly by #TheMasters
First round leader Brooks Koepka should have been penalized 2 shots for his caddie giving advice to a competitor. The video evidence couldn’t be more clear, but the players lied, so @TheMasters decided no penalty.🤮 pic.twitter.com/y8UPG2gDs2
— John Ziegler (@Zigmanfreud) April 6, 2023
It looks like Ricky Elliott said “five.”
What's the big deal with that?
Because that could be a rule violation. If Elliott said “five” to indicate to Woodland’s caddie Brennan Little that Koepka hit a 5-iron, it could violate Rule 10-2a.
According to Rule 10-2a, during a round a player must not:
- Give advice to anyone in the competition who is playing on the course
- Ask anyone for advice, other than the player’s caddie, or
- Touch another player’s equipment to learn information that would be advice if given by or asked of the other player
- Penalty for breach of rule: two strokes
Is that really giving advice?
Yeah. If Woodland learned from Elliott that Koepka hit a certain shot with a specific club, it could help him decide what to hit with.
Whoa. So what happened?
The Masters committee ultimately determined there was no rules violation. Koepka said that Woodland and his caddie “had no idea what we were hitting” because Woodland asked Koepka what club he used to hit that last shot.
So that's it?
Yep. We move on to the next round!
Breaking; Koepka’s caddie tells Masters rules committee he was not offering Woodlands caddie advice, but merely sharing his favourite British Boy Band from the 1990s, London based quintet 5. pic.twitter.com/xSIbDmQ6E2
— TweeterAlliss (Parody) (by Jove) (@TweeterAlliss) April 7, 2023
