WHEN Richie Ramsay, who demonstrated an impressive level of resilience to put the controversy of Celtic Manor behind him and qualify in a play-off for the Open at Turnberry last night, won the US Amateur Championship at Hazeltine three years ago, the Aberdonian needed to overcome a couple of rules violations which could have proved more costly under different circumstances.
One of the breaches was entirely out of the Scot's hands. As he lined up a putt in a quarter-final tie on the 17th hole, his teenage caddie, Thomas Bullen, touched the line – an infringement which resulted in the immediate loss of the hole. In the fi
nal, though, Ramsay had no-one but himself to blame when he found his ball in a hazard. It is forbidden to ground your club in any hazard, but that was exactly what the Scot did under the gaze of the TV cameras during a practice swing. Again, the penalty was to forfeit the hole. Fast forward to 2009 at the Wales Open where, worryingly, Ramsay once more found his golfing reputation under scrutiny at the weekend. Video footage of the Scot using his foot to press down the ground on the eighth hole of his second round before placing his ball on the sodden fairway had set alarm bells ringing for the European Tour's chief referee, John Paramor.
The pictures did not look good and Paramor wanted to know if Ramsay had improved his lie. No-one was suggesting the 25-year-old deliberately tried to gain an advantage. But even if he had inadvertently broken the rule then he would incur a two- stroke penalty. Paramor's concerns at Celtic Manor were so strong that when Ramsay, who had led at the halfway stage of the Wales Open, came off the course on Saturday evening, the men discussed the issue at such length, in a meeting which lasted for two hours.
Because Ramsay had not finished his round – he came back on Sunday morning to play the 17th and 18th – he was allowed to think about his situation overnight. Paramor explained the onus was on the player to police his own actions.
Concerned that there was more at stake than just the winning or losing of a tournament – the Scot eventually tied for a share of tenth – Ramsay acknowledged he did not sleep much and was worried what people would think of him. But he declined to call the two-shot penalty.
Unlike many sports, golf pours scorn on any individual who either doesn't know the rules or doesn't play by them.
Ramsay understands this and was adamant he had not down anything wrong. "I looked at it on TV and said to John 'the perception is it doesn't look good'. But I can say 100 per cent I didn't improve the lie. I can only tell the truth.
"I didn't sleep (on Saturday] and there was a lot going on in my head. I was concerned about what people would think. When I got up, all I felt I could do was tell the truth."
Ramsay made another rules mistake on Sunday morning when he did not take relief in the proper way on the 18th and suffered a one-shot penalty.
It goes without saying that if Ramsay finds himself curled up in bed any time soon with a good book, he could do worse than re-read the rules of golf. However innocent the errors, the incidents at the Wales Open posed a threat to Ramsay's good name in golf which he simply can't afford to repeat.
On the other hand, the Aberdonian demonstrated a keen ability to put past events to one side yesterday. And carding scores of 65 and 68 at Sunningdale to earn a spot at Turnberry in July was a commendable sign of character.
