SHUTTLE GATE: Bizarre Ruling Leaves Korn Ferry Players In Disbelief

A bizarre ruling on the Korn Ferry Tour made waves earlier today.

The Lakewood National Club in Florida was playing host to Wilson Furr, Alejandro Tosti, and Mason Andersen, among others, on Friday. After they played the 18th hole, which was their ninth due to a back nine start – a volunteer offered the three ball a ride to the next tee.

In Korn Ferry events, transportation is not allowed unless otherwise stated. The decision to jump on the shuttle cost each player a two-stroke penalty.

A shuttle was parked off the 18th green at the KFT event, it was driven by a volunteer who asked the players if they needed a ride.

It resulted in the threesome incurring a two-stroke penalty and may have cost Wilson Furr his job. The story here. https://t.co/g9jtUgYUEV

— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) April 21, 2023

Update to shuttle story:

Another group has been penalized 2 strokes for yesterdays round. It has caused Boo Weekly to miss the cut. It seems to be assessed this morning as the tee times are mixed up. Also heard from multiple sources that other groups took shuttles but haven’t…

— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) April 22, 2023

Wolfe’s was second group off of the morning. So if they were there to shuttle players that finished their round to scoring they were there 2+ hours early.

So now a total of 3 shuttles in place on two different holes. Seems there was some serious miscommunication.

— Monday Q Info (@acaseofthegolf1) April 23, 2023

Wilson Furr has been affected most, likely not getting any more starts in qualifiers this season, save for a sponsors exemption. The confusion and despair after the ruling was apparent – with the players declaring the cart looked like it was meant for them, marked ‘shuttle’ and being driven by a volunteer who had offered to drive them to the next hole.

Furr said:

“This decision cost me my job.” “If this was a member cart, I deserve the penalty, but this was a cart parked right outside the tunnel, marked shuttle, with a volunteer driving.” 

Regardless of the context, this just isn’t a good look for golf. Pace of play is the hot-button issue right now, and many people have suggested that if LIV were to adopt carts to speed the game up, they would win over some more fans, then becoming the modernized version of the game. Forcing obscure penalties on players makes the game look dated and could seriously affect the career of Wilson Furr in particular. Qualifying for a pro card is hard enough without being penalized for something as trivial as jumping in a cart.

It’s a bad look for a sport trying to keep up with the times – and a golden opportunity for a new breakout tour to grab the upper hand and deliver a more interesting, faster, player-friendly product for its viewers.

Cover Image Via Yahoo Sports