A thrilling finale to the GS Caltex Maekyung Open in Korea on Sunday was in danger of being overshadowed by an ugly incident involving title chaser In-hoi Hur.
While teammates Min-hyuk Song and Ming-yu Cho were battling it out for the first time, Hur was quietly putting the day together, completely unaware that he would be handed a two-stroke penalty as soon as he stepped off the course at Namseoul Country Club.
Regardless of what lay ahead, Hur had a seven-under 13 in his final round, and at 11 under was just a shot behind Song, with Cho leading by 13 under to 10.
Hur was penalized for late signing for a bad mark after Saturday’s third round, and he can count himself lucky not to be sent off outright due to the nature of the offence.
Playing 418 yards on the par-4 seventh, Hur was sharp with the first shot and hit for a while. According to local officials, a spectator found and picked up the Korean’s first ball believing it was out of bounds.
The Korea Golf Association umpire in attendance ruled that the first ball should not count, and Hur played his time game and put down what he believed to be the correct score on his scorecard.
