Did Wyndham Clark's ball move? Fans rage at controversial video of US Open winner

Wyndham Clark fended off Rory McIlroy to claim an unlikely US Open victory at Los Angeles Country Club on Sunday.

But some fans think the American golfer should have been penalised along the way.

Clark beat McIlroy by a shot to claim the US Open title

1

Clark beat McIlroy by a shot to claim the US Open titleCredit: Getty

A rules controversy has erupted on social media following an incident that occurred during Clark's final round.

The world no.32 addressed the back of his ball with a wedge while weighing up a shot on the back nine.

In a video that has since gone viral, some Twitter users insist the ball moved.

Rule 9.4a says 'if the player lifts his or her ball at rest or causes it to move, the ball must be replaced on its original spot', and failure to do so results in a general one-shot penalty.

READ MORE ON US OPEN

Meanwhile, Rule 14.7a dictates a two-stroke penalty for playing the ball from the wrong spot.

Jon Rahm infamously found this out when addressing a chip shot during his victory at the Memorial Tournament in 2020.

If Clark's ball simply oscillated and stayed in its original spot, no rules were breached.

The USGA did not see any need to investigate the incident.

Most read in Golf

Jon Rahm was assessed a two-stroke penalty for a violation of Rule 9.4 after a ball at rest moved.

His score on the par-3 16th has been adjusted from a 2 to a 4.

— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) July 20, 2020

However, given the American won by a single stroke over McIlroy, many were left outraged...

One fan said on Twitter: "How are we just pretending that was not a penalty by Clark??? 10000% the same as Rahm and was improving his lie. It sucks but gotta call it the same."

A Rickie Fowler 'tracker' account said: "Woahhhh??!?! Wyndham not gonna get a penalty for this? @USGA."

A third said: "@McIlroyRory you need to bring this up. You should be tied. Clark's ball moved. No penalty was assessed. @USGA."

Others were quick to point out that even if the ball did move, it may not have been enough to warrant a penalty.

Golf journalist Dan Rapaport tweeted: "Oscillates maybe but doesn’t move nearly enough for a penalty."

You Might Also Like