Presidents Cup: Why the Jordan Spieth ruling was so bad for golf

Jordan Spieth may have broken the letter of the rule on the 12th hole Saturday, but the ridiculous enforcement hurt more than this Presidents Cup.

Depending on your rooting interests, this year’s Presidents Cup has probably been lacking any standalone, high-interest moment. The International side has been all but out of this thing since Friday afternoon, and a blowout probably isn’t great for ratings. But then, with one seemingly insignificant swipe of a putter, Jordan Spieth found himself in the middle of a major controversy.

By now, you’ve almost certainly seen the footage, but we’ll recap here. Spieth and Patrick Reed were all square through 11 in their match against Jason Day and Louis Oosthuizen. Playing less than 300 yards on the day, all four players had driven near the green, with Day away. His chip to just two feet was conceded, and then everything went crazy.

With Day’s birdie putt already good, Oosthuizen’s chip for eagle would have won the hole for the International team. It flew past, though, and Spieth swept up the ball and tossed it back to his opponent. Oosthuizen clearly didn’t see anything wrong with that move at first, as he looked to Spieth for the toss.

Match referee Andy McFee stepped in, however, asserting that since Oosthuizen’s ball was still in motion, Spieth (and, in this team event, Reed) would be charged with a loss of the hole. Instead of attempting their putts to halve the hole, the Americans were forced to concede, pushing them 1-down.

Rulings must be made for the good of the game

Here’s where it gets insane. While McFee’s ruling was based on the letter of the law – and there’s no doubt that Spieth technically broke the rule – it went against absolutely everything in the spirit of the game.

For starters, the ball was rolling downhill away from the cup. As Spieth correctly argued, and Oosthuizen supported, there was absolutely no chance the ball would roll back up the hill for the winning eagle. Nobody could argue that there was any change in the result of the hole, so what was the point of fighting the ruling?

Even Tiger Woods couldn’t change McFee’s mind, and the European Tour official actually blew Tiger off, saying the issue was “between me and Spieth”. While true, that’s an absolutely awful look for an official in a high-profile decision.

In the end, Spieth and Reed still prevailed, but it leaves a sour taste in everybody’s mouth. The fact that the Americans haven’t been in danger of losing this Cup from the start shouldn’t change that.

Golf’s governing bodies talk a lot about “growing” the game, but try to explain this rule to a casual fan. Tell them that, no, the ball wasn’t turning around magically, but that doesn’t matter. Then tell them that’s just one of hundreds of rules that most people won’t truly know until they find themselves on the wrong side of the call.

See how many people enjoy the game more after that.

To be fair, Spieth is a professional, and should know most of these rules, especially the ones that can cost an entire hole in match play. But what’s more important? Proving that point, or doing the obviously right thing?

McFee did his job, but the job description is in desperate need of a change.

Next: Presidents Cup: Is this U.S. team the best ever assembled?

What will help more – simplifying golf’s rule book, or allowing the players more room to police their own games?