LIV Golf has made it clear that it has no tolerance for slow play.
Adrian Meronk was hit with a one-stroke penalty in the final round of the LIV Golf Jeddah Invitational on Sunday after breaking the tour's pace of play policy.
The penalty meant Meronk – the reigning DP World Tour player of the year – went from what would’ve been a tie for fifth alongside Jon Rahm to a six-way share of sixth, a fall that cost him $240,000 in prize money. He still walked away with over $500,000, though.
According to a LIV Golf statement on the ruling, Meronk's group – which included Rahm and Kevin Na – was warned by a rules official after their eighth hole of the day, where the group was “out of position on the golf course as well as behind in relation to time par”.
Four holes later, the group lost its position on the course further and was officially timed by a rules official.
LIV Golf’s pace of play policy states: “A player has 40 seconds to play each stroke, with an additional 10 seconds if they are the first to play any stroke in the group.”
On his 18th hole, Meronk exceeded two minutes when playing his second shot, leading to a one-stroke penalty.
LIV Golf said in a statement: “Meronk was immediately notified by an official and assessed a one-stroke penalty. With the one-stroke penalty, Meronk’s score of 4 on the par-5 18th hole resulted in a score of 5.”
Explanation of one-stroke penalty assessed to Adrian Meronk on Sunday at #LIVGolf Jeddah pic.twitter.com/LRZbJ5bC2jMarch 3, 2024
The penalty dropped Meronk to 10-under for his tournament, seven strokes behind winner Joaquin Niemann.
It was just the second time in LIV Golf’s three-year history that a slow-play penalty was handed out, with Richard Bland receiving the first in Spain last year.
Bland was assessed a one-stroke penalty during the second round of LIV Golf Andalucia after he took 84 seconds to play his tee shot on the par-3 15th hole at Real Club Valderrama.
Fellow LIV Golfer Brooks Koepka has been one of the most outspoken opponents of slow play in the professional game, and discussed the issue at the Masters and PGA Championship last year.
“Honestly, I would start stroking guys,” Koepka said at last year’s PGA Championship, which he won.
“If you are going to take that long, you have to get stroked. There are certain circumstances where the wind switches, something like that, it’s understandable, but taking a while is, I just think, unnecessary.”
