Sandy lyle the sellout

[popey]

After 9 holes of the open he was +11 and walked off the course. Surely that should not be allowed as he has taken the place of someone who is actually capable of winning and not just being there as an ex champion!

[chingali]

Perhaps he had sustained some sort of injury? I am certainly hoping that is the case.

[popey]

Nope he didn't as they interviewed him after and he said that he was finding it hard so walked!

If only he would have looked at the leaderboard and saw the other players scores!

Even Tom Watson is doing well and he is not the youngest golfer out there!

[Mr Eagle]

Finding it hard? ,wouldnt like to be next to him in the trenches.

This whole thing about past champions is stupid, give them a 5 year exemption and thats it

[popey]

I completely agree with a 5 year exemption they just take the place of people who could have a chance of winning. But I suppose golf is built on traditions and thats what makes it great!

[Craig Mac]

That's weak on his part if he pulled a "Bobby Jones". Hopefully the officials caught him in the parking lot and asked him how he enjoyed his final Open Championship.

[Mr Eagle]

Rich Beem is another who quit , a long way to go for a nine hole!

[JaY_B]

As previously said, Rich Beem has also pulled out after 9 holes.

It shows a lack of self respect imo, withdrawing from a competition prematurely because you are playing bad.

[albatross]

  Mr Eagle said:

Finding it hard? ,wouldnt like to be next to him in the trenches.

I don't agree with this. I do think it's ridiculous that Sandy Lyle pulled out today. Really weak. But if you win a tournament like the Open Championship, you should be able to come back for as long as you like. We shouldn't let Sandy Lyle ruin the exemptions for guys like Norman,Watson,O'Meara. These guys all played well today. I do think that the R & A should be able to yank an exemption for a player that pulls the crap that Lyle did today though.

[Mr Eagle]

Fair enough mangine77 I stand corrected.

Of course the players who can still do it should not be excluded ,

sorry guys

[popey]

Yes i suppose if the pro will be competitive then its fine. Although i think players like Norman did well today because of the bad conditions. If it was a nice sunny day then they would be a long way down the leaderboard.

[geezer]

In fairness to him, in his interview he did say that he hit a few shots that gave him a bit of a ring in the hands, and his fingers were going numb... Pretty weak excuse imo. My opinion of him has dropped somewhat.

[Chas]

  geezer said:

In fairness to him, in his interview he did say that he hit a few shots that gave him a bit of a ring in the hands, and his fingers were going numb...

He must think our brains are going numb ....

This is very disappointing. Doesn't he care what people think of him?

[Lemay427]

I heard his interview on the drive home. LOL...what a pansy. He seriously needs to never show up at an event again. "It was really hard" WAAAHHH WAAHH!!!

Very embarrasing...

[Scratch-Hopeful]

  Chas said:

He must think our brains are going numb ....

Wait, is he supposed to care what people think of him? Just saying.

And it is pretty shady to just walk off, finish the round at least. Show respect to the players who fell just short of qualifying.

[Harry Longshanks]

R&A; Responds

to Lyle's Withdrawal

  None said:

R&A; Godfather: You disappoint me, Sandy Sandy Lyle didn’t make any friends at the Royal and Ancient when he quit playing Thursday morning after just nine holes in cold and rainy conditions. The 1985 British Open champion, who claimed his fingers “went a little numb” when he withdrew at 11-over, got no sympathy from R&A; boss Peter Dawson. “It’s very disappointing and you have to say he was having a bad day,” Dawson said. “I have to say professional golfers should complete the round. You wonder what they would think if the recorder went home early and you couldn’t hand your scorecard in. Maybe he was having a bad day.” Dawson largely defended the course setup, which was challenged by some players who said they couldn’t reach the fairway during the windy morning rounds. If the current weekend forecast is correct, those players haven’t seen anything yet.

[mstuk]

oh no some of the players could not reach the fairway into a strong head wind on a links course .....welll welcome to my world boys .

Regarding Sandy Lyle the R and A should remove his exemption for next year at the very least .

[JaY_B]

What was the reason for Rich Beem's withdrawal, if any?