NEWTOWN SQUARE, Pa. – Garrick Higgo insisted that he arrived to the first tee on time Thursday to start his PGA Championship.
The official’s watch said otherwise.
The two-time PGA Tour winner was slapped with a rare two-shot penalty for showing up late to his first-round tee time at Aronimink.
“I was there on time,” Higgo said, “but the rule is, if you’re one second late, you’re late. So if you think about it, I was there on time, if you know what I mean.”
Not exactly.
Higgo was set to tee off at 7:18 a.m. ET alongside Shaun Micheel and Michael Brennan. The ESPN broadcast showed Higgo walking down the hill to the first tee at 7:19 a.m. – a minute late – as Micheel struck the first tee shot for the group and Brennan stepped in to tee up his ball.
An official informed Higgo at that point that he’d be penalized two shots under Rule 5.3a. He wound up making double bogey on the hole.
Had he been more than five minutes late to the tee, Higgo would have been disqualified.
The PGA rules committee said that Higgo was on the practice putting green but “not within the area defined as the starting point at his starting time.” That area, according to the rules sheet, is by the rope, gallery stakes and bike fencing near the first and 10thtees.
Higgo is believed to be the first player since David Lipsky in 2019 to receive a penalty for tardiness.
“I just said to myself, it’s going to be a great opportunity to shoot a low score,” Higgo said.
The South African responded by going 3 under the rest of the way, carding a 1-under 69 to sit just two shots off the early lead – an impressive bounce back considering the unusual circumstances to start his round.
Afterward, Higgo was seen arguing his case with the rules official in the scoring tent, trying to gain clarity. Higgo said that his playing partners also defended him, but he later admitted that he knew that he was running late and that his caddie was “yelling at me to get to the tee.”
“If you know me, then you know I am very casual and laid back,” he said. “I thought I had time. I was obviously too casual, yeah.”
Scheffler is tied for the lead after shooting 3-under 67 at Aronimink on Thursday.
