NISSAN OPEN NOTEBOOK: EARLY EXIT FOR GOOZZZZZEN.Byline: Dave Shelburne Staff Writer PACIFIC PALISADES Palisades, cliffs along the west bank of the Hudson River, NE N.J. and SE N.Y., extending from N of Jersey City, N.J., to the vicinity of Piermont, N.Y., with a general altitude of from 350 ft to 550 ft (107–168 m). - One of the least-known rules in the PGA Tour The PGA Tour is an organization that operates the USA's main professional golf tours. It is headquartered in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, USA. Its name is officially rendered in all caps as “PGA TOUR". regulations was made absolutely unforgettable Wednesday for two-time U.S. Open The term U.S. Open is applied to "open" United States national championships in a particular sport, in which anybody, amateur or professional, American or non-American may compete. These include:
Goosen was born in Pietersburg (now Polokwane), South Africa. . The world's fifth-ranked player was disqualified dis·qual·i·fy tr.v. dis·qual·i·fied, dis·qual·i·fy·ing, dis·qual·i·fies 1. a. To render unqualified or unfit. b. To declare unqualified or ineligible. 2. from the Nissan Open The Northern Trust Open, formally known as the Nissan Open and originally known as the Los Angeles Open, is a regular golf tournament on the PGA Tour. It is played annually in February in Pacific Palisades, California. at Riviera Country Club The Riviera Country Club is a country club with a championship golf course. It is located in Pacific Palisades, California, within the city limits of Los Angeles, California. The country club opened in 1926, with George C. Thomas, Jr. as the course architect. because he missed his 6:40 a.m. Pro-Am starting time Noun 1. starting time - the time at which something is supposed to begin; "they got an early start"; "she knew from the get-go that he was the man for her" commencement, get-go, offset, outset, showtime, start, kickoff, beginning, first . Goosen, who played in a practice round Tuesday, had asked for an early Pro-Am starting time, then overslept. ``If you miss your time in the Pro-Am, you can't play in the tournament,'' PGA Tour rules official Mark Russell This article is about the American comedian. For the British composer, see Mark Russell (composer). Mark Russell (born August 23 1932 in Buffalo, New York) is an American political satirist/comedian. He also sings and plays the piano. said after informing Goosen of the disqualification. ``And you know, Retief Goosen, who is a model citizen, overslept today. He didn't get a wake-up call and he had a 6:40 time which he requested, and he was not able to make that, and we put the first (Pro-Am) alternate in there.'' Goosen, a 36-year-old from Pietersburg, South Africa, won U.S. Open titles in 2001 and `04 and also won last year's Tour Championship. He was the second highest ranked player in the Nissan, behind No. 2 Tiger Woods. Woody Austin, already in the tournament and designated as one of the three morning alternates for Pro-Am play, would have been ineligible to play today had he not been on site to fill Goosen's spot early Wednesday. ``He came up about 6:30, about 10 minutes before it was time to play,'' Russell said. ``I said we haven't seen Retief Goosen, you need to go to the 10th tee. So he went down and played for Retief.'' Russell said it was not the first time the year-old regulation had been enforced: ``I think David Frost, in Dallas, that happened to, and I think Peter Jacobsen, maybe, in the 84 Lumber. I was not at either one of those tournaments, but I understand that was the case.'' Russell said if a player is on-site and injured, he could be excused from playing in the Pro-Am and retain his tournament eligibility. ``Some medical situation or something like that,'' he said. ``In this case, it's just a mistake, and there was not much we could do about it. There was nothing we could do about it.'' Russell said Goosen's reaction was one of disappointment. ``He definitely wanted to play. He had come out here and played a practice round (Tuesday) and was looking forward to playing in the Pro-Am. ... He just overslept and missed his time.'' --In the field: John Elliott, who started the week as second alternate, was given Goosen's berth in the Nissan and will join major champions Rich Beem (2002 PGA Championship) and Mark Calcavecchia (1989 British Open) in today's 7:40 a.m. group on the 10th tee. First alternate James Driscoll got in earlier as a replacement for Mark Hensby, who withdrew Tuesday. --Choi champ: K.J. Choi was the top pro in the Pro-Am, earning $2,000 after his team finished 18-under-par 53. David Duval was second at 55 and Tiger Woods third at 56 on a day of perfect playing conditions as the annual preliminary event beat the weather that is expected to produce rain throughout the tournament. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: RETIEF GOOSEN The two-time U.S. Open champ oversleeps and is disqualified from the Nissan Open, which begins today. |
|
||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion