Charl Schwartzel found himself at the centre of a controversy during the Honda Classic as he appeared to take a stand against slow play.
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South African fans know the 2011 Masters champion as a cool, calm and widely liked golfer, which made Friday’s outburst all the more remarkable.
Schwartzel was playing with Ben Crane – the same player who had South African-born Rory Sabbatini storm ahead of the group in 2005 – and India’s Anirban Lahiri.
On this occasion, the group was put on the clock on the 18th hole – something that got the South African extremely hot under the collar – but were not penalised.
Commentator Dan Hicks said: ‘We’re showing you Charl Schwartzel having a heated discussion with PGA Tour official Andrew Miller. And normally Schwartzel is a, you know, very mild-mannered, quiet kind of guy, but he was heated up. This was after he completed his 18th hole and was done.’
No player has been penalised a stroke in a non-team play event on the PGA TOUR since 1995.
