PGA institutes code of conduct policy: Will it be used or just lip service?

May 14, 2026; Newtown Square, Pennsylvania, USA; Jon Rahm reacts to his shot from the 12th tee during the first round of the PGA Championship golf tournament at Aronimink Golf Club. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

Any decision is at the discretion of the PGA’s Rules Committee. But allowing such behavior to go unpunished on the first day of the policy calls into question if it will be used at all or is merely messing up the locker room wallpaper.

A similar policy was instituted by Augusta National last month, which didn’t hesitate to issue a warning to Sergio Garcia after he damaged the turf and broke the shaft of his driver over the leg of a bench during the final round of the Masters. Robert MacIntyre also reportedly received a stern talking to after he was caught on camera raising his middle finger after hitting a shot into the water at the 15th hole.

“If a player does something sort of egregious, unfortunately, we would give a warning to that player, and if they were to do it again, there would be a two-shot penalty,” Haigh explained.

It is still to be seen what it will take for a warning to be issued by the PGA rules committee. More and more, players are showing that a policy of this sort is necessary.

“It's really for the good of the game that we're implementing it,” Haigh said.

Adam Schupak is a senior writer for Golfweek, covering the PGA Tour.

This article originally appeared on Golfweek: PGA's new conduct code faces early test