Guan penalized for slow play, in danger of missing Masters cut
Guan Tianlang, the youngest contestant in Masters history, was assessed a 1-stroke penalty for slow play during his second round Friday and was in danger of missing the 36-hole cut.
AUGUSTA, Ga. – Fourteen-year-old Guan Tianlang, the youngest player ever to compete in the Masters, was in danger of missing the 36-hole cut Friday after being assessed a 1-stroke penalty for slow play.
Guan, of China, finished with a 3-over-par 75 in the second round, giving him a two-day score of 4-over 148. When he finished, he stood in a tie for 62nd place; the Masters allows the low 50 players and ties plus anyone within 10 strokes of the lead to continue to the weekend.
Guan received a warning for slow play at No. 12. After he finished play at 17 with a par, a rules official walked up to him and told him he was being penalized one stroke for being out of position, giving him a bogey on the hole.
"I simply cannot believe they would punish the weakest player in the field," said former European Ryder Cup captain Colin Montgomerie, speaking on Sky Sports, according to ESPN.com.
If not for the slow-play penalty, Guan would have parred his last 11 holes. His other bogeys came at the fourth and the seventh holes.
It would be a shame of the penalty deprived Guan, who qualified for this tournament by winning the Asia-Pacific Amateur, of a chance to play on the weekend. He had impressed all observers this week with his steady ball-striking and his precise putting
According to PGATour.com, Guan received the first slow-play penalty in a tour event since 1995, when Glen Day was assessed a 1-stroke penalty at the Honda Classic.
--Joe Juliano