It’s one of the most stupid rules in golf.  I take that back – it’s one of the most stupid rules in ANY SPORT:  Signing a wrong scorecard gets you disqualified.

Non-golfers:  In tournament golf, a player is disqualified (not just penalized… DISQUALIFIED) for signing a scorecard that has a lower (better) score than the one they made. Yes, this guards against cheaters, but RARELY are disqualified players being accused of cheating.  Usually everyone involved, including the authorities, knows that a scorecard mistake was an honest one.

But get it wrong and you’re out.  It’s as if golf demands that after you play, you must then pass an added bookkeeping test.

Most sports have umpires or referees who keep players’ scores for them. Some sports, like gymnastics, don’t even have scores until the judges say what the score is.  Runners and swimmers have clocks so sophisticated they “score” players’ times to the 100th of a second. Knock down 9 pins in bowling and a “9” magically registers on the monitor over your head.

But in golf, your ability to keep score is an integral part of the competition itself.  Mess it up and you’re out.

The first issue I have with this I’ll call a “Pesky accounting issue” and that’s that tournament golfers don’t keep their own official scorecard, we exchange scorecards before the round.  This means our official score is initially kept by someone else.  Any accountant will tell you it’s harder to find an error than it is to make one.  In golf, we’re literally “auditing” our competitors math.

The second issue I have is the LPGA, PGA, and many other tournaments actually have Official Scorers.  There’s literally an independent scorekeeper walking with players, keeping their scores.  So, shouldn’t the scoring responsibility rest with them?  Does Lebron James have to confirm how many points he scored before the LA Lakers win (or lose)?

This rule is outdated, counter-intuitive, and most importantly, unjust – the penalty doesn’t fit the crime.  A mathematical error (even a careless one) shouldn’t result in the ultimate penalty. If there’s evidence someone is cheating, disqualify them.  Ban them from ever competing again, for crying out loud.  But if someone makes an honest mistake that only becomes known after they sign their scorecard – JUST FIX IT!