Leading PGA Tour China Money Winner Xin-Jun Zhang Given Six Months For Signing Incorrect Scorecards
/Thanks to reader Michael for spotting the Sina.com story, which, very loosely translated using crude online methods, says that 2014 PGA Tour China leading money winner Xin-Jun Zhang has been suspended six months by the China Golf Association for signing incorrect scorecards. (The top five order-of-merit leaders from the newly formed PGA Tour China earn Web.com Tour cards as part of the China Golf/PGA Tour partnership announced a year ago this weekend by Tim Finchem. The tour has four more events on the 2014 schedule.)
"Translated" from the story Reader CW shares an English version:
Zhang was disqualified for signing for the wrong score when carding at the Lanhai Open in Shanghai in June before getting his second penalty for a similar incident at the Cadillac Championship in Beijing in September.
The ban, from September 15 to March 14, rules Zhang out of several year-end championships such as the WGC-HSBC Champions and PGA Tour China's Tour Championship.
But a win and three runner-up finishes in the Tour have earned him the top spot in the Order of Merit with 650,600 yuan ($106,048), about 140,000 yuan clear of second-placed David McKenzie of Australia.
Zhang was eligible for the BMW Masters but is not entered.
Maybe someone can help us based on this notice from the China Golf Association:
The PGA Tour, contacted by this website, declined to comment on Zhang, whose bio can be seen here.
While the PGA Tour historically does not comment on player fines, suspensions or drug policy violations, Zhang's suspension by the PGA Tour's partner in China raises the bar on the no-commenting policy after the publication of the CGA's letter. I doubt the irony needs to be pointed out, but in this case, China's golf association is more transparent than America's PGA Tour.