Major Champion Receives Two-Stroke Penalty After 'Huge Mistake'

Among the abundance of birdies and eagles in round one of The American Express on Thursday was an extremely costly mistake from Brian Harman.

Min Woo Lee and Pierceson Coody set the pace at a blistering 10-under on day one of this season's second PGA Tour event and were smiling from ear to ear after their round.

However, quite a long way behind them on the leaderboard was a frustrated Major winner who had suffered a moment he'd rather forget.

The 2023 Open champion had opened with a bogey at the Pete Dye Stadium Course before rectifying the damage via gains at the third and fourth holes. Another birdie at the eighth left Harman chasing but in a decent position to kick on.

Yet, it was at the 10th hole where what should have been a guaranteed birdie look turned into the start of a nightmare.

The left-hander had struck a wonderful shot to 10 feet on the par 4 and was wondering down towards the green when it was pointed out that he'd hit the wrong ball.

Reacting immediately to the dramatic event, Golf Channel analyst Billy Ray Brown said: “It’s been quite some time since I’ve seen that event unfold. That is a huge mistake there.”

Meanwhile, fellow analyst Smylie Kaufman added: “It’s the worst feeling in the world.”

Harman's pro partner Max Homa had already sent his ball onto the green, so there was no mix-up there. Plus, pros nearly always compare golf balls if they're using the same brand so as to avoid these kinds of errors.

According to the Golf Channel broadcast, it had to be one of the amateur golf balls which had been mistakenly hit. Each pro is playing alongside amateurs through the first three rounds this week.

Kaufman said: "Well, almost certainly every single time you play a round of golf, you compare golf balls mainly with the guys you’re playing with in your group.

"Now, for the most part, the amateurs are always a tee up, so you’ll compare your golf ball to, let’s say, Brian Harman would show Max Homa his ball today. But you really don’t walk up to the amateur tee and compare your golf ball.

“So they could’ve had similar marks; we’re not really sure. Could’ve been the same number. But still, it is the job of the person hitting the shot to know that’s their golf ball. So very, very unfortunate.”

Curt Byrum then chimed in and commented on the external design of Harman's Titleist golf ball, which was personalized using a black marker pen. He said: “I mean, that ball is well-marked… It must not have been logo up.”

Kaufman replied: “That had to be what it was. The logo was down, and they get up there and they realize they hit the wrong ball.”

Harman's error led to an immediate two-stroke penalty under Rule 6.3c (1). Going on to hit his actual ball from where it had landed off the tee, the left-hander was blessed with a slice of good fortune by the golfing Gods - perhaps out of pity - as his approach shot bounced off rocks protecting the water and onto the green.

Harman couldn't make the most of the break, however, two-putting for a double-bogey and walking off with a six. He then remarked his ball before making his way to the 11th tee box.

Unfortunately for the 39-year-old, his day wasn't about to improve. The former University of Georgia man dunked his second shot into the water at the par-5 11th and then made a real mess of tidying up to record another double-bogey.

In the end, Harman birdied the par-4 12th but signed for an opening one-over 73 which has - in all likelihood - ended his chances of winning a fifth PGA Tour title.