At Glance
‣ Xander Schauffele leads the 2024 Wells Fargo Championship by three shots after the first round, despite a controversial rules incident that allowed him a favorable drop on his penultimate hole.
‣ Schauffele’s drive on the par-4 8th hole at Quail Hollow went right towards trees and bushes near a penalty area, but after a nearly three-minute search, his ball was found beyond the penalty area, allowing for a free drop due to a ShotLink tower obstructing his line of play.
‣ Despite criticism from fans and journalists, Schauffele defended the legitimacy of the ruling in his post-round press conference, explaining the sequence of events that led to him securing a par on the hole, which significantly contributed to his leading position.
🚨🫳👀 #WATCH — The full video of the Xander Schauffele #DropGate situation 😲
— NUCLR GOLF (@NUCLRGOLF)
Xander Schauffele’s got a three-shot lead at the Wells Fargo Championship, and everyone’s talking about it. Rory McIlroy and Collin Morikawa are trailing after the first round. But, oh boy, it wasn’t a walk in the park for Schauffele. His Thursday was something out of a movie, with six birdies, an eagle, and just one bogey. That’s a 64, folks. Yet, it could’ve been anyone’s game if not for that one moment on the 8th.
So, there he was, on the par-4 8th, which was almost his last for the day. His drive? Way off to the right, heading straight for the trees and bushes. Everyone was on the edge of their seats, or, well, searching for the ball for almost three minutes. Then, Wyndham Clark, bless him, thought he found Schauffele’s ball right by a fence but, importantly, outside the penalty area.
Here’s where it gets spicy. The ball was cozied up next to the property fence line. Schauffele, being the pro he is, chats up a PGA Tour rules official. And guess what? He gets a free drop because of a ShotLink tower in the way. #WATCH — That #DropGate moment is something else.
Despite the slim chances of Schauffele moving his ball through that tiny gap, he didn’t sweat it. He just dropped his ball onto some pine straw, two club lengths closer to the fairway. This new spot gave him a clear shot at the green, helping him save par. A moment before, that seemed like a dream.
Not everyone was thrilled, though. Fans and journalists had their eyebrows raised. But Schauffele, in his post-round presser, was all chill. He admitted to being “really lucky” a few times but insisted the ruling was legit.
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Schauffele’s luck didn’t just stop at finding the ball. He moved some rocks, got relief from a tricky spot, and nailed a shot onto the green. From a heart-racing moment to a stress-free par, just like that.
One reporter was curious if Schauffele was actually in the penalty area. “Nope, beyond it,” he replied. The plot thickens because Clark, one of his playing partners, had decided to search a bit farther than where the ball was thought to have landed. And just in the nick of time, as they were almost out of time to find the original ball.
Schauffele shared how close they were to the three-minute search limit. A volunteer near the ShotLink tower had heard the ball land in the hazard, so that’s where they looked first. Then Wyndham and Austin went further up and found the ball. “Wyndham’s like, I think that’s your ball,” Schauffele recounted. And the rest is history.
Schauffele’s next round is with Clark and Shane Lowry, teeing off at 12.17pm ET on Friday. What a story, huh? And to think, all of this unfolded in just the first round. Golf, man. It’s never just a game.
