[PHOTO: Andy Lyons]
It’s not a party, the saying goes, until something gets broken, and by the same token, it’s not really the FedEx Cup Playoffs until a club is thrown in anger resulting in its demise.
Sam Burns got hotter than Marble Bar in January when he pulled his tee shot badly on the par-4 ninth hole during the third round of the FedEx St Jude Championship at TPC Southwind. From his follow-through position, the Louisianan flung his driver straight into the ground, snapping the head clean from the shaft. PGA Tour rules official Mark Dusbabek later confirmed that a club can’t be replaced if it is damaged in anger and not through the normal course of play.
After an errant tee shot on No. 9, Sam Burns breaks his driver and will be without it for the back nine.
With the double bogey, he is now 4 shots back (solo 3rd). pic.twitter.com/Nm28b94YeM
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) August 17, 2024
Burns, who is 29th in the points standings and ranked 33rd in the world, trailed leader and playing partner Hideki Matsuyama by two shots when he arrived at the par-4 ninth. Things didn’t improve after his wayward drive. He punched out into the fairway, but missed the green left with a wedge from 100 metres, nearly going into the hazard. Then he made matters worse by chunking his chip shot, his ball coming back down the bank to him. Burns pitched his next close and settled for a double-bogey.
A five-time tour winner but without a victory this year, Burns, 28, bounced back nicely on the next hole, converting a five-foot birdie putt to regain a stroke. He finished the round with a 70 to sit seven shots adrift of Matsuyama.
