Lexi Thompson had a fair chance of winning the Ana Inspiration, the present Chevron Championship, in 2017. However, a strange golf rule at the time forced her to add a couple of penalties to her score, eventually making her lose the title to another golfer. The incident didn’t just give a blow to the American golfer, but it annoyed others in the golf world too. 

The current world no. 7 was in the lead going into the final round of the major tournament at the Mission Hills Country Club. However, the officials gave her the unfortunate news during the fourth round that they penalized four shots from her total since she broke the rules in the third round. 

Notably, Thompson had an excellent three-shot lead after the third round ended. However, her score became a one-shot deficit from her opponent after getting penalized. Although she made up the point and forced So Yeon Ryu to a playoff, Thompson lost the chance to win another major. 

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The golf world got furious after the incident

According to the officials, a television viewer called and informed them that Thompson incorrectly replaced her ball after deciding to mark on the 17th green. The Tour officials also let her know that they reviewed the video and decided to give her a two-shot penalty for infringement. 

As if it wasn’t enough to break her spirit, the officials also informed Thompson that she got another 2-shot penalty as well. According to them, she signed an incorrect scorecard after the third round and broke the rule once again. 

Read more: LPGA Tour Legends Nelly Korda and Lexi Thompson to be a Part of an Illustrious Field at a PGA Tour Sanctioned Event

“Everyone’s pissed off, not just players,” Christie Kerr, an American golfer said. “Random golfers, I see, are coming up and saying, ‘Can you believe what happened? It’s an outrage,'” she added. “People aren’t happy.”

Tiger Woods, Paul Goydos, and Cheyenne Woods were some professional golfers who criticized the controversial rule on social media. 

Many TV personalities and others in the golf world found how the officials dealt with the situation absurd too. They emphasized on how the officials did wrong by giving her another penalty with the first one. 

Lexi Thompson still couldn’t recover from the trauma even after a year

Thompson was only 23 years old when the golf rules made her lose a chance of winning a major title.

“I had nightmares about it,” Lexi Thompson told media after a year when she returned to the Mission Hills Country Club. “And I still occasionally do,” she added. “It’s been rough.” 

Winning a major is every golfer’s dream. And Thompson has all chances of winning it. However, the strange rules broke her dream and converted it into her nightmare. 

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