Justin Doeden’s cheating scandal from last week’s PGA Tour Canada event has caught the attention of both Padraig Harrington and Bernhard Langer, two stalwarts of the PGA Tour Champions.
PGA Tour cheating scandal has Padraig Harrington in disbelief, Bernhard Langer divulges $330,000 penalty
Harrington and Langer, two stalwarts of the PGA Tour Champions, weighed in on the cheating scandal that occurred in a PGA Tour Canada event.
Jack Milko has been playing golf since he was five years old. He has yet to record a hole-in-one, but he did secure an M.A. in Sports Journalism from St. Bonaventure University.
Both Harrington and Langer discussed the matter ahead of The Senior Open, as Royal Porthcawl in Wales hosts the tournament this week.
“It’s hard to believe that in the modern era, somebody could still think that they could [cheat],” Harrington said Wednesday. “I honestly don’t know [if it is] a cry for help. I have no idea. It just seems bizarre that somebody would do that in a fully-fledged organized tour event. And he thought he would get away with it?”
Doeden made a double-bogey seven on the 18th hole, a par-5, at the Commissionaires Ottawa Open. His double put him one shot below the cut line.
He then erased the seven and replaced it with a five on his scorecard, temporarily putting him at 3-under for the tournament and one shot above the cut, per Monday Q’s Ryan French.
“Is this a serial offender?” Harrington pressed. “I suppose that’s why we have in real life, why we have a court system and a judge because, you know, I’m sitting here thinking, it makes no sense. There must be a reason why this has happened, is this poor person under some outside pressure or something, or why would they do this?”
Doeden then admitted to his mistake and asked for forgiveness, citing scripture in a tweet.
PGA Tour Canada has not yet announced repercussions for Doeden, but a year-long suspension is possible.
Doeden eventually called the penalty on himself, as he withdrew from the tournament immediately after officials launched an investigation into this incident.
“It’s obviously very disappointing when anybody cheats because the game of golf was built and founded on honesty and integrity, and that’s what we try to teach our younger generations, and that’s what we all try to be, role models for that and uphold the rules,” Langer said in his pre-tournament press conference Wednesday.
“Golf is very unique where we penalize ourselves,” Langer continued.
“I once had a 3-foot putt; I lined it up, put my putter behind it, looked at the hole, and put it back. The ball moved marginally. Nobody saw it; not even a TV camera could pick it up, but I knew the line wasn’t where I had put it. I called for a ruling, and well, the rule is, you address it, you get a one-shot penalty, and that cost me $330,000, and I called it on myself.”
“You don’t see that in any other sport.”
Langer is one of the most accomplished European players in history, as he won The Masters twice and holds the record for most majors won on the PGA Tour Champions circuit.
He was also crucial to Team Europe’s Ryder Cup success throughout the 1980s and 1990s.
And yet, Langer knew when to call a penalty on himself, even as one of the most recognizable and successful golfers on the planet.
That is a story all golfers should be aware of: always police yourself, even if it costs money, because one’s integrity stands above all else.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko for more golf coverage. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough too.
