Cumberland Times-News

Local Sports

September 5, 2010

Campbell disqualified for failing to register

Associated Press

— NORTON, Mass. — This FedEx Cup might be remembered as much for the winners as who didn’t get to play.

One week after Jim Furyk was knocked out of a tournament for oversleeping and missing his pro-am time, Chad Campbell was disqualified Saturday at the Deutsche Bank Championship when officials realized he never registered for the tournament.

“Just can’t believe you make a mistake like that,” Campbell said.

Much like the formality of signing a scorecard at the end of a round, PGA Tour players must register when they get to a tournament before it starts. Campbell arrived Tuesday evening, practiced all week and even played Friday, opening with a 1-over 72.

He just never signed up.

Campbell was No. 83 in the FedEx Cup standings, needing to move into the top 70 to advance to the third round next week in Chicago. He would have played Saturday afternoon in the strongest wind.

“It’s a sad thing,” said Mark Russell, the tour’s vice president of rules and competition. “I’m not at all pleased with it. But it’s a regulation that you’ve got to register when you arrive on site. And if you don’t before your competition round, the regulation says you’re ineligible from competing in the tournament.”

Several players were stunned to hear the news, including Furyk.

Furyk slipped from No. 3 to No. 9 in the playoff standings. Campbell is out altogether.

“I feel terrible for him,” Furyk said.

Furyk and Davis Love III said whenever they have forgotten to register, a rules official had the sheet to sign before they teed off. Furyk said the responsibility lies with Campbell — as it did with Furyk last week with the pro-am mistake — but questioned why officials weren’t looking out for him.

Russell said no one noticed until Friday night when they were going through the forms. He said he called Campbell, who realized he never registered.

“He accepted total responsibility for it,” Russell said.

Love said it might be another rule that needs changing, just as the PGA Tour suspended the pro-am rule for the rest of the year. In the case of Furyk’s pro-am mishap and Campbell failing to register, no one can replace them in the field.

“It doesn’t feel like a regular tournament,” said Love, adding that it would be easy for a player not to follow his routine.

This is Campbell’s second administrative blunder. A year ago, he was on the plane to Hawaii for the Sony Open when he realized he never entered the tournament.

“It’s starting to be a trend,” Campbell said.

 

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