Haotong Li Assessed One-Stroke Penalty In Third Round Of Amgen Irish Open

Haotong Li was assessed a one-stroke penalty in the third round of the Amgen Irish Open at Trump International Doonbeg.

The trouble started for the Chinese player, who was paired with leader Shane Lowry and Jacob Skov Olesen, when he hit his second shot at the par-5 10th into a stream that cuts through the fairway.

As a result, Li found himself standing in the middle of the stream contemplating what to do next, with the unusual incident captured on camera.

After consulting a rules official back on dry land, Li returned to the stream, where the ball, which had been moved from its original position, needed to be replaced.

After some guidance from Shane Lowry, Li estimated the spot where the ball had originally been. He then played the ball from the stream, with his shot reaching the green.

However, the DP World Tour later confirmed that Li was assessed a one-stroke penalty for a breach of Rule 9.4b after causing his ball at rest to move.

The rule covers a player lifting or deliberately touching their ball or causing it to move, with the penalty being one stroke and the ball required to be replaced on its original spot.

At the time of the incident, Li was tied for third on 10 under, three back of leader Olesen, although the penalty resulted in his first bogey of the day.

Whether the moment affected his form over the remainder of the round is unclear, but things went downhill after that, with Li going on to make three more bogeys - and no birdies - as he finished with a two-over-par 72.

That meant he ended the day tied for sixth and, crucially, 10 shots behind 54-hole leader Lowry, with his chances of a fifth DP World Tour win having all but slipped away.