South African Garrick Higgo was clearly kicking himself after being penalized two-strokes for being late to the tee (7:18 am Tee #1) during round one of the PGA Championship at Aronimink Golf Club in Newtown Square, Pennsylvania.
Higgo was set to tee-up in the fourth group of the opening day from the first tee at 7.18am local time how he was on the practice putting green at the time he was set to tee-up and not within the area defined as the starting point at his starting time.
A STUPID ROOKIE MISTAKE OR NOT ??? ….
As 27-year old golfer Garrick Higgo allows himself to be hit with a two-penalty before tee-off day one @PGAChampionship
Hugo’s a two-time @PGATOUR but was not in the official designated area when called ahead of his 7.12am… pic.twitter.com/1nxcmFURJ4
— Fatiha (@TOURMISS) May 14, 2026
The PGA of America’s Local Rules and Terms of the Competition states the following with regard to defining the starting point of a round:
8. Starting Point Defined: For the purpose of applying Rule 5.3a, the starting point for hole #1 and hole #10 is defined by the rope, gallery stakes, green bike fencing and/or blue stakes, blue dots or blue lines.
Garrick Higgo was penalized two shots on the first tee Thursday for being late to his tee time by mere seconds.
He rallied to shoot 1-under @PGAChampionship and stands two off the lead through the morning wave. pic.twitter.com/ONcYECxahq
— PGA TOUR (@PGATOUR) May 14, 2026
With regard to when a player is late to the tee, Rule 5.3 states in part:
a. When to Start Round
A player’s round starts when the player makes a stroke to start their first hole (see Rule 6.1a).The player must start at (and not before) their starting time:
● This means that the player must be ready to play at the starting time and starting point set by the Committee.
● A starting time set by the Committee is treated as an exact time (for example, 9 am means 9:00:00 am, not any time until 9:01 am).
Penalty for Breach of Rule 5.3a: Disqualification, with three exceptions (see exception 1 below):
● Player Arrives at Starting Point, Ready to Play, No More Than Five Minutes Late: The player gets the general penalty applied to their first hole.
Higgo, and contesting a third PGA Championship, posted a first hole double-bogey ‘6’ but to his credit picked-up the two shots to make the turn at level par.
