Tiger Woods calls Dustin Johnson USGA rules controversy a ‘farce’

Tiger Woods is an occasional contributor to Twitter but the rules ruckus that the USGA caused by calling a late penalty on U.S. Open winner Dustin Johnson riled even the Big Cat.

Woods -- watching the major from somewhere off-site as he continues to rehab his surgically repaired back -- responded to the situation in which the chair of the USGA rules committee absolved DJ of causing his ball to move on the fifth green, only to have someone overrule his decision later. The situation moved into the Twilight Zone when a rules czar approached Johnson on the 12th tee and informed him that he may (or may not) have actually accrued the penalty after all and would be informed of the decision after the round.

The whole bizarre incident caused an uproar across the world of golf, with players including Rory McIlroy and Jordan Spieth tweeting their outrage.

Even Jack Nicklaus, on hand to congratulate the first-time major winner in person, weighed in on the USGA’s gaffe.

“I thought what you did with all that crap they threw at you was pretty good,” Nicklaus told DJ after the USGA ended up assessing him a one-stroke penalty and lowering his winning score to 4-under 276, according to ESPN’s Ian O’Connor.

The 18-time major champion termed the USGA’s decision “terrible” and “very unfair,” O’Connor tweeted.

DJ, for his part, weathered the storm with grace and fortitude. He calmly made birdie on the 72nd hole to nail down what turned out to be a three-shot win over Jim Furyk, Scott Piercy and 54-hole leader Shane Lowry after the USGA deemed he had caused his ball to move and tacked on the penalty shot.

While his peers could not contain their displeasure with what went down, Johnson, true to his laid-back persona, took it all in stride.

“You know,” he told Fox Sports’ Joe Buck during the trophy celebration, “it’s something they said they were going to look at when I got done so I just tried to focus on what I was doing, not worry about the penalty stroke, and just playing golf from there to the house.”