Finchem asks for a review

The commissioner of the PGA Tour, Tim Finchem, has asked the USGA for a “full and thorough review” of the rules after the recent disqualification of two high-profile players.

Camilo Villegas was disqualified in Hawaii, after a tv viewer rang in having noticed him tap down a divot as it was rolling back towards him. And another viewer noticed Padraig Harrington move a ball as he was marking it on the green in Abu Dhabi.

“I just think that there’s a lot of discomfort with this whole situation and questions raised,” said Finchem, who said he understood that the only way Harrington’s violation was spotted was because of High Definition tv.

“Now if you can’t see the ball move in that kind of setting,” he said, “are you really going to let that go to disqualification? I mean, there needs to be some common sense here maybe in terms of the way these things are. So I don’t know whether the rule will be changed. I don’t know what timeframe the final decision will be made by the USGA. I feel comfortable given the quality of the people at the USGA today that if we can just get into a room and talk seriously about the options, we ought to be able to give this a very careful review.”