After a sparkling third round 79, sponsor ambassador Charley Hoffman met with media to clarify his various charges against the rules, governing bodies and PGA Tour. It’s quite a bizarre transcript.
While I realize we’re talking about someone who will never be confused as a former Oxford and Cambridge man, a few things become clear after reading Hoffman’s remarks. If you are paired with him, watch him like a hawk. And if this is the best the PGA Tour can do for its Policy Board when all bright hands are needed on deck, the future is not bright.
Q. Things often get sort of lost on social media, so I just wanted to ask what you really meant with the Instagram last night.
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: What I meant and what I said, I mean I think I explained it fairly well, but obviously not a huge fan of the USGA and how they govern us all the time.
“Govern us all the time.”
Those pesky rules always in place!
I was under the, or, under the impression that the rule had changed. And I was frustrated when the rule hadn't changed, why it hadn't changed and I think there's some sort of -- I mean obviously we have a PGA TOUR liaison that helps with the USGA and helps in figuring out what the rules should and shouldn't be.
Sounds like someone really doesn’t like playing by the rules.
And it just, it didn't make any sense at that point in time why that rule hadn't changed, especially this exact tournament when it happened to Rickie Fowler, he ended up winning the golf tournament, but it could have cost him the golf tournament.
But as -- and as I told the rules officials last night it's like, everybody says, We're going to change it for the better, we're going to do this and that, we're close or whatever but nothing seems to get done.
Just to be clear, Hoffman had more than one option, chose to drop in the difficult location and is now whining because his ball moved after he placed it. The rules were there to help him in multiple ways, as were the first and second opinions he called in. (The rules staff responded as detailed here.)
And unless you come out on a platform like I did it somewhat influences a change. That's what I meant by the rulings and everything else.
Yes you can really feel the groundswell.
Q. You wrote that you wonder why guys are looking to join another tour. Do you feel like a lack of accountability or a rules issue are why guys --
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: I think it's a whole, a whole -- everything. You got to look at yourself as a policy board member and look at your self in the face, as I said, what can I do better as a player director, what can the executive committee do, executive directors do better to make sure that we are the best tour in the world.
And if it's -- the PGA TOUR's rewarding us by using social media in their platforms now, but they don't like it when you don't say something that may not be up to their standard. But you're rewarded on it.
Apparently Charley missed the meetings where it was explained that attempts to get attention or negative publicity would not factor into the PIP. Must have been busy reading the Rules of Golf!
I'm by no means trying to win the Player Impact Program, but I wanted to get my point across that there's rules out there in the game of golf that should be changed.
Because Charley doesn’t like them and declined the safer option.
I had no -- I wasn't near the golf ball, I had no intent to hit at the golf ball and the ball moved after I dropped it twice and I have to put it down where the ball landed. I have no control over that, I turn my back and the ball goes in the water. How is that a rule that is good for the game of golf and how we play? I mean, not one person at a country club would have took another penalty for that, why is it, in professional golf, are we doing that? It's not the first time it's happened.
Charley should draw up some Rules his ownself. Really dig in to the literature, the plight of the PGA Tour pro and publish his version of the rules.
So you have to use what I have because obviously what we, what the players have said and our person that sits on their board and sits with them, it hasn't gotten through to them.
And I talked to the USGA last night and hopefully they got the point and hopefully it does change.
What a fun Friday night for that USGA official.
So hopefully a little bit of hard times for me going through this, probably going to catch a ton of crap, will make the game better and I hopefully the PGA TOUR and the policy board and everybody gets together and we keep everybody here and we play in the U.S. the best game of golf in the world and we have the best players play week-in and week-out here in the United States.
Nice recovery there. But uh…
Q. You made a pretty giant leap though going from this rules infraction to, you know --
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: Yes.
Q. -- players --
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: Strategically.
Q. Yeah?
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: I, if I just griped about a rule no one probably catches it. No one says anything.
Q. How much thought did you put in --
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: A decent amount. So I put a jab in there on purpose just so that the media would catch it.
So clever! What other kinds of bait and switch do you pull?
Q. And Jay Monahan's name too?
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: And Jay, yeah, it was "Sorry, Jay", that I was doing this, because I have a great relationship with Jay and I have nothing for admiration about what Jay does for this TOUR and how hard he works.
So it was a "Sorry, Jay" because I know he's going -- this isn't an easy time for the PGA TOUR. So that's why that "Sorry, Jay" that that's why I said we need to do better, we as player directors, as executive directors, commissioners, everybody, we need to do better to make sure we keep everybody here in the U.S.
With you on the case, I’ll take the Saudis and their silly oily money.
Q. You're one of the few players on the policy board. Is the system in place not working?
CHARLEY HOFFMAN: I think it works really good, but we have, we have a threat. I mean, that's real. I mean, you can't hide under a rock and say it's not.
And I, there's no way that I, it's ever crossed my mind to go over and play for a competitor and -- ever -- and it was never -- if it came across in that Instagram post that I have been reached by them, I have not been reached by them, it came across wrong. I added that so the media would catch it, so I would prove my point on the rules side.
What a chap!
Waste Management must be feeling so good about the endorsement deal. Because he really is a waste of a spot in the tournament.
