The Psychic – The DeChambeau Ruling

The Psychic rubs his weary eyes. He has been studying the crystal ball for hours searching for the answer. “How does a drawing compass and a yardage book give a player an illegal advantage?” The more pathways he searches the more black holes he encounters.

One of the Psychic’s all time favorite golfers, Bryson DeChambeau, is set to defend his title at the John Deere Classic. But he’ll do so without a piece of equipment that he had in his arsenal for his last PGA TOUR start.

The crystal ball provides the Psychic a complete review of the detailed use of the drawing compass. He watches as TV cameras at last month’s Travelers Championship recorded DeChambeau using a compass on his yardage book. The Psychic witnessed TOUR Officials telling DeChambeau that they would review his use of the device. The studious Bryson, who has a degree in psychics, explained that he used the compass to determine the exact pin locations.

The Psychic intently watches as the PGA TOUR officially says, ”There is no clear precedent on the use of a compass in this manner, and it is not currently prohibited under the Rules of Golf. With our feedback, the USGA is reviewing the matter and is expected to make a ruling on its conformity with the Rules soon.”

The process would be nothing more than a formality, DeChambeau thought. Sighting a violation of Rule 14-3 and considering it “unusual equipment that might assist him in making a stroke or in his play,” the USGA officially disallowed the practice.

“Look, I’ll say one thing on that. I will say it’s unfortunate,” DeChambeau said speaking with reporters at TPC Deere Run. “That was never my intention, to skirt the rules or anything like that. It was just a device I thought had been used for a long time in different fields. It shouldn’t be an issue. It’s not a distance-measuring device. It’s just a referencing tool.”

With no clear answer explaining the benefits of a compass from within the crystal ball, the Psychic can’t help but feel that his brainy hero is receiving another slap on the wrist for attempting to challenge the USGA.

The Psychic watches as DeChambeau battles with the USGA over rules interpretations. The younger Bryson went head to head with the USGA in a war of words over the sidesaddle style of putting he experimented with early in his career. The Psychic watches DeChambeau meet individually with John Bodenhamer, the USGA’s Senior Managing Director of Championships and Governance after the decision.

Using his unusually high IQ, DeChambeau convinces the USGA that he believes there was some movement in their meeting and wishes to consult with the USGA to make the rules “more clear.” The Psychic knows one thing is for sure; DeChambeau won’t change his scientific approach that has propelled him into the top 25 in the world rankings and a spot on the Ryder Cup Team.

The Psychic is proud of DeChambeau as he says, “Look, I’m not trying to push the game in any direction. I’m trying to utilize every tool in my brain to be able to reference information and get information in a way that I can utilize to the best of my ability. We want to see what’s allowable, and what information we can gather, and how much resolution can we have under that type of information.”

The Psychic removes his turban and covers the magic marble with the soft shammy cloth. And treats himself to a glass of crackers and milk then to bed with the curtains shut tight for some well deserved rest.