During the second round of the 2025 PGA Championship at Quail Hollow Club, Irish golfer Shane Lowry experienced a moment of intense frustration after a controversial ruling denied him relief for an embedded ball.
The incident occurred on the par-4 eighth hole, where Lowry’s tee shot landed in a pitch mark on the fairway. Believing he was entitled to relief, Lowry consulted a rules official.
However, the official determined that since the ball was embedded in another player’s pitch mark and not Lowry’s own, relief was not permitted under Rule 16.3 of the Rules of Golf, which allows relief only when a ball is embedded in its own pitch mark .(The Irish Sun, EssentiallySports, Today’s Golfer)
Visibly upset by the decision, Lowry’s subsequent shot fell short, landing in a greenside bunker. He reacted by slamming his club into the turf and uttering an expletive-laden outburst, including shouting “F**k this place” . After missing his par putt and settling for a bogey, Lowry was seen flipping off his golf ball in a display of continued frustration .
(The Irish Times, The Independent, GolfDigest.com)
The challenging conditions at Quail Hollow, exacerbated by recent rains leading to soggy fairways and “mud balls,” have been a point of contention among players. World number one Scottie Scheffler also expressed dissatisfaction with the tournament’s decision not to implement preferred lies despite the wet conditions .(The Guardian, The Irish Sun)
At the time of the incident, Lowry was hovering around the projected cut line of +2, making the ruling and subsequent bogey particularly impactful on his standing in the tournament . The episode has sparked discussions about the strict interpretations of golf rules and the emotional toll high-stake competitions can exert on player