Lexi Thompson lost the first LPGA major tournament of 2017 after a fan informed the LPGA about a four-stroke penalty a day late.
Thompson appeared to be on the verge of winning the 2017 ANA Inspiration on Sunday based on her four scorecards from the tournament, but after a fan who had been watching from home emailed the LPGA, the golfer’s scorecard was changed, according to CBS Sports.
Thompson’s original scores were a 69 on Thursday, and then 67s Friday through Sunday. However, her 67 score on Saturday was wrong, according to the fan who emailed the golf organization.
The fan alerted the LPGA of a mistake that Thompson had made during her round on Saturday, when she was on the putting green on the 17th hole with just one more hole to go in the round.
Footage shows that Thompson slightly moved her golf ball after marking it, even though there’s no way of telling if it was done intentionally.
In the middle of her final round at the tournament, Thompson was told that she was going to be losing four strokes – two for moving the ball and another two for signing her scorecard incorrectly on Saturday.
When an official informed her of the penalty as they stood at the 12th hole, Thompson asked “Is this a joke? Oh, my God,” The Washington Post noted.
Fighting back tears, Thompson said “Four-stroke penalty, that’s just ridiculous.”
Thompson wasn’t the only one who thought the penalty was a joke.
14-time major tournament winner Tiger Woods was apparently watching from home, as he offered his two cents and encouraged Thompson to “win this thing anyway.”
While she wasn’t able to walk away with the win, Thompson finished strong as she forced a playoff before losing to South Korea’s So Yeon Ryu.
The LPGA later issued a statement to explain the penalty.
“On Sunday afternoon, the LPGA received an email from a television viewer, saying that Lexi Thompson did not properly replace her ball before putting out the 17th hole during Saturday’s third round of the ANA Inspiration. The claim was quickly investigated by LPGA Rules officials,” the statement said.
“After a full review, it was determined that Thompson breached Rule 20-7c (Playing From Wrong Place), and received a two-stroke penalty under Rule 16-1b. She incurred an additional two-stroke penalty under Rule 6-6d for returning an incorrect scorecard in round three,” the statement continued. “She was immediately notified of the breach by LPGA Rules Committee in between holes 12 and 13 of the final round.”
A victory at the ANA International would have been Thompson’s second major title of her career.
The penalty became a trending topic among many Twitter users on Sunday.
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