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SPORTS A21
Wednesday 3 February
Fringe He also is honest. I would have questioned
“Now that being said, if why we spent an hour and
Continued from page 17 I had come out here this a half in a rain delay when
morning and it was perfect, nothing had changed,” he
But they are the best in and I lost the tournament, said. q
the world at playing golf
tournaments, not running Brandt Snedeker pitches from the rough behind the 17th green
them. at Torrey Pines during the final round of the Farmers Insurance
Brandt Snedeker was Open golf tournament Sunday, Jan. 31, 2016, in San Diego.
tempted by hindsight af-
ter one of the great final Associated Press
rounds on the PGA Tour on
Sunday. He closed with a locker room Sunday after- sell, the tour’s vice presi-
3-under 69 at Torrey Pines noon when play was sus- dent of rules and competi-
in rain and gusts that con- pended for the third and tion with 35 years of experi-
sistently topped 40 mph. final time. Players dealt ence behind him, no doubt
He went the final 17 holes with the wretched condi- would love to see players
without a bogey. He shot tions all day, and about make these decisions. Be-
32 on the back nine. His half of those who finished cause whether or not play
longest par putt was 3 feet. couldn’t break 80. And yet, was halted, someone was
Snedeker, who started the it was clear that some were going to complain.
final round in a tie for 27th, angry on behalf of Snede- Snedeker was asked if he
was one shot behind and ker. They were in awe of his thought he could a run
looking good when he fin- score and wanted to see tournament. The answer
ished. The leaders still had it rewarded. To stop play was quick even by his stan-
to play the back nine. A meant a chance the lead- dards. “No,” he said with a
short time later, however, ers would have calm con- big grin. “The thing I realize,
the horn sounded to sus- ditions in the morning. that most guys on tour real-
pend play and everyone Charley Hoffman, tied with ize, is these officials do the
came in off the course. Snedeker going into Sun- best they can. They’re out
Suddenly, Snedeker’s odds day until he shot an 80, there 15 hours a day.
seemed to get longer. went so far as to post on Stopping play for the final
“Weather looks perfect to Instagram, “Rules staff ab- time on Sunday, which
me outside!!” he tweeted. solutely botched (Farmers looked like a bad break
Was he joking? Not entirely. Insurance Open). Whole to Snedeker at the time,
“Last night if you had seen field could have finished appeared to be the right
the texts between me and today. Rules officials need guess.
my brother ... ‘I can’t be- to be held accountable. An hour after play was
lieve they called it,’ and ‘I Sorry CBS.” stopped, tents came un-
got hosed,’ and ‘Maybe Or maybe that was his done and light fixtures
it will be a good thing,’” idea of campaigning to dropped from the rafters.
Snedeker said Monday be chair of the Players Ad- About a dozen trees were
after his one-shot victory. visory Council. Voting ends toppled, including one left
“And my caddie kept say- in two weeks. of the 18th fairway where
ing, ‘Don’t worry about it. Hoffman never explained fans typically watch the
Maybe it will work out.’ This what was botched. The long approach to the
morning when I woke up two delays Sunday morn- green.
it was, ‘We’re done, I’ve ing were a combined 1 Snedeker said he tries not
got no chance.’ And then hour, 35 minutes, so it’s not to be critical of rules offi-
the break of a lifetime. The like the round would have cials because “it’s an im-
wind is pumping into them finished, anyway. Mark Rus- perfect science.”
the last five holes. You
can’t make this stuff up.”
It was the perfect storm —
bad weather, great golf
— to make up a six-shot
deficit.
As wild as it seemed to
Snedeker, that’s what the
rules staff had to rely on to
make their decisions.
There was a mixture of dis-
gust and irritation in the
