Because of 111-second tee shot, contending pro is hit with rules penalty

Gregorio de Leo on Sunday at the Turkish Airlines Open.Getty Images

Gregorio de Leo, standing on the National Golf Club’s 11th tee, was one shot out of the lead. During the final round of the DP World Tour’s Turkish Airlines Open, he was flying.

Then he slowed down.

And so did his momentum.

According to a DP World Tour release, the 26-year-old Italian pro took 111 seconds to hit his tee shot on the 11th, and he was penalized a stroke under the circuit’s pace of play policy. Ben Parsons of Today’s Golfer — who had been at the event and whose work you can read here — reported that de Leo’s group had been monitored since the ninth tee, and the time was 61 seconds more than de Leo was allotted.

On the 11th, a 168-yard par-3, de Leo was a shot out of the lead, according to Parsons’ story, then he hit his tee shot short of the green, hit to 2 feet and made his putt. From there, Parsons wrote, an official told de Leo that he he been penalized, and de Leo’s par turned into a bogey. In a statement to Parsons, the DP World Tour said that de Leo “exceeded his allowed time for the stroke (50 seconds) by more than an additional 30 seconds – whilst being monitored,” and that led to the one-shot penalty.

Over his remaining holes, de Leo played one-over golf, and he finished four back of champion Mikael Lindberg, who won his first DP World Tour event. “This is a dream come true,” Lindberg told the tour’s website. “I’ve been dreaming about this for so many years.

“My feelings on this last hole, I almost felt dizzy and I almost felt I wanted to throw up.”

According to the DP World Tour’s release, two other players were noted on the “bad times register,” but neither was penalized. During the first round, Adrian Otaegui was the first to play his approach shot on the eighth hole, and he took 58 seconds to hit, which was 8 seconds longer than he was allotted. During the second round, Stefano Mazzoli was the first to play his approach shot on the 9th hole, and he took 76 seconds to hit, which was 26 seconds longer than he was allotted.

Slow play has been a talking point in pro golf. Two weeks ago, Jin Hee Im was penalized a stroke during the third round of the LPGA’s JM Eagle L.A. Championship, and Im lost in a three-player playoff the next day.

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