Augusta, Ga. — Brooks Koepka’s caddy and playing partner Gary Woodland and his caddy in Thursday’s opening round of the Masters were sidelined Friday by major parties seen on video as a rules violation — even a A new question about interaction has emerged.
After their second round on Friday, Koepka, Woodland and Koepka’s caddy, Ricky Elliott, all said there was no violation of the rules, that there was no intent to assist a fellow player.
This incident happened on the 15thth On the hole Thursday, when Koepka hit his 5-iron approach shot, Elliott flashed five fingers in the direction of Brennan Little, Woodland’s caddy.
As they did after Thursday’s round, Masters officials brought Koepka and Woodland into a room, watched the video and went over it again Friday. Because in the video, as Koepka takes off his glove after hitting the 5-iron, it looks like he flashed “five” with his hand.
“We just … when I finished the round today, (we) got carried away,” said Koepka, who was 12-under and four shots off the field Friday afternoon.
“Today was all about my hand and my glove. I don’t know if you want to close your fist and take off the gloves or what.
“The last thing I’m going to do is give (the club choice) to (2019) US Open champion Gary Woodland. And the funny thing about it is I think if he knew we were hitting five, he would have hit six because I don’t think Gary is that short and he’s 10 (yards) in front of me.”
Rule 10.2a states that golfers are not permitted to give or solicit advice to other golfers. A penalty for both sides calls for two strokes.
After the round on Thursday, Masters officials showed the video to the players and their caddies and asked them about it and expressed satisfaction that no violations had occurred.
Elliott, sitting in a cart that was scheduled to take him away from the front of Augusta National’s clubhouse on Friday after Koepka’s round, was asked by the Post if he had said the word “five” to the underdog at 15.th Koepka hit the green with a 5-iron and the fairway Thursday before playing his approach through the woods.
“No, it was a completely different situation,” Elliott said. “No comment, it’s all sorted.”
Asked if he felt he drew unfair criticism over the incident, Elliott said, “Yes, I do.”
“Brooks hit his shot on 15. I asked ‘Baby’ (Little) if he saw what he hit (and) he said, ‘No,'” Woodland said Friday.
“As we were going down (the fairway), I asked Brooks what he hit, and he said ‘five.’ . Fortunately for me, I didn’t know what he hit. That’s the end of it.”
Woodland said of Friday’s inquiry: “They told us it was going to be a big deal. They told us inside that it was taking a big life. At the end of the day, I didn’t hear anything or I didn’t see anything. My caddy neither heard nor saw anything.
“That’s why they brought us in and showed us all the angles. At the end of the day, the ‘girl’ neither saw nor heard anything. That’s where we left it.”
— with Ian O’Connor
