Rory Sabbatini was disqualified from the PGA Tour's The RSM Classic on Thursday, and a sticker is to blame.
After Sabbatini's round, there was a long discussion among PGA Tour rules officials as to whether or not the Slovakian Olympic silver medalist had violatedf Rule 4.1 of the Rules of Golf.
As it turned out, Sabbatini had what was deemed a "non-conforming external attachment" on the face of fairway wood he used during the round. That's a fancy way, in this case, of saying a sticker.
Rory Sabbatini DQ from The RSM Classic due to a violation of Rule 4.1. Sabbatini had a non-conforming external attachment to the face of a club he used during the round.
— PGA TOUR Communications (@PGATOURComms) November 18, 2021
Now, what was the sticker doing on the club face? According to Golf Channel, the sticker was intended for Foresight Sports products, and it was likely a sticker intended to help practicing with a launch monitor they make. The stickers make it easier for their launch monitors to track a club head and the face through impact so they can get a more accurate reading, typically in an outdoor setting.
“There are stickers, reflective stickers. [They are] tiny,” said John Munch, PGA Tour senior tournament director for equipment standards, to Golf Channel. “The players use them to track club head speed when they practice and he just didn’t take them off.”
Sabbatini reported the violation after shooting 4-under 68 in his opening round. He did not comment on the disqualification after the round.
