The Rules of Golf allow you to play a ball as it lies in a penalty area, no extra stroke required. There is also no rule about keeping your shirt on. The rulebook, however, does not account for the scorecard. At +9 in a $9.6 million PGA Tour event, most players would protect the scorecard and take the drop. Isaiah Salinda chose a different route and went shirtless instead.

On the par-3 17th at PGA National’s Champion Course, Salinda’s tee shot found the water during Round 2 of the 2026 Cognizant Classic. Ranked 229th in the world and already five shots outside the cut, he decided to play the ball as it lay in the lake rather than take the penalty. Shoes, socks, and shirt came off. He rolled up his pants and waded in. The ball made it to the green, but the par putt did not drop. He walked away with a bogey.

Salinda opened with a 77 in Round 1, putting himself under pressure from the start. He birdied the 10th in Round 2, but a quadruple bogey on 11 ended any chance of making the cut. A poor drive, a punch-out, another ball in the water, and four putts left him at +9 by the 17th tee.

Before Salinda reached the 17th at PGA National’s Champion Course, water recoveries had already become a theme. David Ford, Nico Echavarria, and K.H. Lee all played shots from water hazards in the opening rounds. Commentators noted that players removing socks and rolling up pants was now a regular sight.

The 17th hole played 171 yards on Friday, a par-3 over water that had already caused problems for several players. Before Salinda, no one attempting a water recovery had taken off a shirt. Salinda removed his shoes, socks, and shirt, rolled up his pants, and went in to play the ball as it lay. The PGA Tour posted the video with the caption ‘whatever it takes.’ By Friday evening, it had over 213,000 views. The comments told a different story than the caption.

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Isaiah Salinda’s shirtless shot divides the internet: Take the Drop

“At +9, take the penalty and move on.”

That was the sentiment running through most of the thread, the straightforward arithmetic of a player well outside the cut line choosing the riskier, penalty-free route over a sensible drop.

“+9? He’s just like me, fr!”

There was a point behind the humor. Salinda came into the week ranked 229th in the world, a mid-level PGA Tour player still trying to make his mark at the top level. At +9 through 29 holes, the gap between him and the cut was not something a single good run could fix. It was a bigger issue, and a water recovery was never going to change that.

“What happens to the PGA dress code? Shot penalty or fine?”

Tour rules require players to look presentable and dress in accordance with accepted golf standards. There is no rule that specifically bans removing a shirt in a penalty area. The PGA Tour did not comment on the incident.

“Drop would’ve made more sense, since they gave him a 2-stroke penalty for taking his shirt off.”

The comment was sarcastic, but the facts are clear. Salinda was allowed to play the ball as it lay, and there is no penalty for removing a shirt. The rulebook does not mention such a penalty.

“Vying for the cover of Golf Digest.”

In his 42 PGA Tour starts since joining the tour in 2025, Salinda had made 23 cuts and accumulated nearly $2 million in career earnings. A missed cut at +11 will not define that record. But in a sport where discipline carries its own professional currency, the question the clip leaves behind is a straightforward one: when the leaderboard has already delivered its verdict, does playing from the water without a shirt read as competitive resolve, or does it simply become the thing people remember about your week?