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Wheatcroft blames bunker for tournament-losing shot at RBC Canadian Open

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If you caught the final-round drama north of the border at the RBC Canadian Open yesterday, you witnessed this grim scene: Steve Wheatcroft, ultimately needing to get up-and-down from a green-side bunker to birdie the 72nd hole to finish at 12-under par for a tournament-deciding playoff, blading his third shot into a hazard.

Here’s how it looked on the telecast.

Wheatcroft went on to bogey the hole, finishing T5 at 10-under. Asked in his post-round press conference about what happened in the bunker, he said:

“It was an easy shot to be honest with you. It was a perfect lie, sitting right in the bottom of the bunker. All I was trying to do was try not to chunk it out of there and let it run down the hill. I dug my feet in and realized there was zero sand underneath my shoes.

“Obviously you can’t test the surface. I mean, you can’t play from that. I don’t know how else — what I could have done any different. It was an easy bunker shot. I actually said to my caddie, I was like, I think I can make this shot.

“I hit it. I hit it kind of right where I wanted to and the club absolutely bounced off the sand. There was nothing in there. I took my club and raked around in there and for about a full yard in there, there was not even 1/8th inch of sand anywhere in there. It was just rock hard.

“It’s a brutal way to lose a golf tournament. I didn’t feel like I did much wrong in there. I tried to cut the 4-iron in there and it didn’t cut. I’m sure I had a little nerves going. I’m sure I kept it a little too far to the left but I knew the bunker shot was easy. Just wish there would have been sand underneath.”

Injecting a bit of humor to a disappointing situation, here’s what he offered later on Twitter.

Graham DeLaet agreed.

As did Kelly Kraft…

Certainly, the bunker sand looked sparse on the video, but that didn’t stop many on Twitter from suggesting Wheatcroft was merely whining and making excuses for failing to get the job done under pressure. And another strain of commentary on the Pennsylvania native’s bunker shot: He ought to have taken the high road and let others weigh in on what happened.

What do you think? Was the bunker under-filled? Was Wheatcroft right in his post-round, Twitter comments? Should he have taken the high road?

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69 Comments

69 Comments

  1. Paul

    Aug 2, 2016 at 1:16 pm

    His comment should have been something like, “There was very little sand to play my shot from. I determined this with my feet. What I should have played was more of a chunk and run shot but I just wasn’t comfortable with that shot having not practiced it and given my current circumstances. I seldom have to play that shot style of shot in the bunkers we are usually playing out of. I guess I need to work on that. The problem is that it is difficult finding a place to practice it. Earlier on in the week would have been a good time.”

  2. Speedy

    Jul 27, 2016 at 1:38 am

    Stance was too far from the ball. A flat fast swing followed. No sympathy.

  3. John

    Jul 26, 2016 at 10:48 pm

    Bunch of idiots! Nothing you can do from a hard pan lie. Bounce doesn’t matter and you can’t chunk it out of there. You can’t get underneith the ball no matter what club you use.

    • jo

      Jul 27, 2016 at 7:20 am

      Its not hard pan here, just dense sand. Calling out ppl to be idiots is a little harsh seeing that u don’t even understand the conditions. Your comment alone is a gd point, without the first three word attack.

  4. Jake Anderson

    Jul 26, 2016 at 1:10 pm

    if he were as good a golfer as i am, he would have holed that shot. but not everyone can be a multiple major champion.

  5. DaveyD

    Jul 26, 2016 at 10:46 am

    The next Canadian Open will be at Glen Abbey. Have previous Canadian Opens had bunker fill issues?

  6. Mark Walgren

    Jul 26, 2016 at 10:00 am

    Sorry but I have no pity. He and his caddie had plenty of time to study the course prior to the tournament. Also, at his level, he should be able to adjust to these kinds of shots and different courses, every course will be different…

  7. jo

    Jul 26, 2016 at 7:58 am

    Welcome to Southern Ontairo golf Wheatcroft. If you play in native sand bunkers here your going to find that they can get dense and compact later in the day as they settle. And seeing that it is all clay around here doesn’t help. Should have chunked it, you would have been fine. He had already talked him self out of the proper shot before he hit it. It is a tough break at the end of well played tournament. But u did hit it in the hazard instead of the green. Still a gr8 top finish for Wheatcroft

  8. Ru

    Jul 26, 2016 at 2:38 am

    As somebody said, he could have chipped it out, or, else he had 4 days to figure this out! You didn’t think to take a gander at how some of them had been played by other players, and may be should have just practiced that type of shot in case. Not a very good professional, is he? Can’t adapt? Typical of these lazy pampered golfers who only seem to play on perfect carpet grass, who also would even complain about the type of rake being used.

  9. Dave

    Jul 25, 2016 at 9:28 pm

    Oh ya the old days.. This is 2016 Canada’s national championship you would think they could afford some sand. Mabey there’s a message there might be for sale . We have all been there. And for us hacks it expected but for a pro trying to win bunkers should be consistent ,good playing though.

    • Bob

      Jul 26, 2016 at 2:20 pm

      Why would GlenAbby invest in new sand. The golf course has been sold and is going to be developed into condo’s in a few years 🙂

  10. ooffa

    Jul 25, 2016 at 8:48 pm

    Only a true loser blames something other then himself.

  11. Brett

    Jul 25, 2016 at 8:30 pm

    A bunker is a hazard. It doesn’t have to be consistent from one to the next. If you feel it’s firm, change the type of shot that you’re playing. Sucks it happened, but that’s golf. It’s like saying that your ball sitting down in the rough on a chip cost you the tournament.

  12. Snowman9000

    Jul 25, 2016 at 8:03 pm

    On the TV replay right after the shot, I saw that he hit the sand about 6 inches behind the ball. Make of that what you will.

  13. Simeon

    Jul 25, 2016 at 5:46 pm

    Should have taken putter.

  14. talljohn777

    Jul 25, 2016 at 5:43 pm

    That bunker had better sand then the typical public golf courses we play day in and day out.

  15. TB

    Jul 25, 2016 at 4:16 pm

    This guy HAD this tournament won…I believe he was 12 under with TWO REACHABLE par 5s left and he proceeds to play the last 3 holes (again…TWO of these holes are par 5s) in TWO over par…that is just abysmal.

    3 or 4 other Tour players tweeted that they had issues in the same bunker with sand being rather thin and I do see both sides of this. Part of Steve’s bunker issues seem to be that he comes in very shallow into the sand and if you have a hardpan bunker with little to no sand, face open leading with lots of bounce and a shallow angle of attack, I can see how you can skull the ball over the green as he did. What a difference though…he plays the last 3 holes in 1 under (not too difficult to ask with TWO reachable par 5s of these three holes), he makes a cool $1M rather than $200K or so….those last 3 holes cost him roughly $800K….wow.

    • Jack Nash

      Jul 25, 2016 at 4:53 pm

      Your problem is you make too much sense. It’s far easier to blame the bunker sand than the inept play. Steve “I’ve Never Won Anything” Wheatcroft came up with a lame excuse. If you can’t tell by the movement of your feet in a bunker on the sand condition, no wonder he’s been invisible for the last decade. Didn’t hear all those that played great complain about the bunkers. I bet they were in them too.

  16. Joebob

    Jul 25, 2016 at 3:02 pm

    Really guys, I am sure none of the critics have ever whined or complained. Give it a rest. If you are so knowledgeable about how to play golf, why aren’t you are tour showing how it’s done. I am sure he would let you put your money where your mouth is. You are probably the same guys that don’t replace your divot or fix ball marks. Get over yourselves….just sayin????

  17. kn

    Jul 25, 2016 at 3:02 pm

    Same conditions for everybody. How about hitting the green on the 18th with your fairway shot so you don’t have to hit it out of a bunker? Honestly, you had no other play except to blade it into the pond? There’s no way to make whining look good on you. Take your tie money and proceed to the next dream golf course on your dream job.

    • Lucky_Intervale

      Jul 25, 2016 at 4:41 pm

      +1

    • Jay

      Jul 25, 2016 at 5:43 pm

      Maybe also work on your 179th place ranking on sand saves this year (out of 199 ranked)

  18. Philip

    Jul 25, 2016 at 3:00 pm

    There was plenty of sand there to do a decent flop shot. It may have not of been that close to the hole, but it would have been on the green. It looked like at least an inch or more of loose sand. If he was in doubt after digging in his shoes he could of done an explosion to a part of the green with enough area to let the ball roll out. I deal with that weekly so I don’t know what the issue was for him with his greater experience than me.

  19. Hippocamp

    Jul 25, 2016 at 2:54 pm

    Was the conditioning bad? Yeah. Should he have complained about it? Probably not, for his own sake.

    Recently played a round with my pro and had a similar bunker shot after heavy rain. About 1/4 inch of sand on top of hard pan. It doesn’t matter how open or closed you play the shot, how much bounce, if the club hits solid earth, it will skid. My pro said they would mark the bunker GIR until they were able to fix it. So, do the pros get cushy conditions? Of course, but they play at the highest level with certain EXPECTATIONS about the conditions, such as the bunkers having enough sand. When the setup violates those expectations, there is blame to be dolled out.

  20. Patricknorm

    Jul 25, 2016 at 2:41 pm

    I’m going to give Wheatcroft a pass here. I’ll tell why. I’ve was born and raised in this and owned a couple of homes . The soil in this area has a ton of clay ( Ian Baker Finch alluded to this on Sunday.)
    What this means is that sand will absorb quickly into the clay. It’s very difficult to keep the bunkers in the Toronto area (GTA) in good playing condition because of this feature. My lawn is rock hard right now and the only wa I can keep it reasonably soft is by aerating then top dressing. Same goes for,the greens and fairways. There’s not a lot of sand in southern Ontario but if you want mix for concrete or a stone driveway there’s tons of quarries al around.
    By the way you can’t really know how hard the lie in the bunker is because you can’t test where the ball is. What’s happened to Wheatcroft has happened to me many times. It’s a coin toss when it works. Regardless of your equipment of form.

    • Jack Nash

      Jul 25, 2016 at 5:17 pm

      Many courses use clay at the bottom of traps to aid in drainage. Many use liners also but the most common and money wise is to use clay.

  21. George

    Jul 25, 2016 at 2:20 pm

    I think Wheatcroft over-elaborated on the situation in the interview. It was obvious to anyone watching as to what happened. There was very little sand in the bunker and he was unable to execute the shot. We’ve all had similar scenarios, and most of us have figured out how to modify our stroke to at least get the ball out somewhat under control. Being a pro, he could have done better.

  22. dr. abo

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:39 pm

    Steve is obviously a week bunker player. Seve, Sergio, Phil or Tiger would have pulled it off. No excuse. he choked plain and simple..

  23. MG2

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:33 pm

    Can’t play a shot off firm sand with an open club face. He needs Phil’s 64 PM grind and play that shot with a square face.

  24. Mike

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:16 pm

    Being in a bunker, like being in any other hazard means a close look at your lie before you decide what shot you’re going to hit. We who play all the time from white asphalt bunkers know this all too well. Even in PGA groomed bunkers you can get uphill or downhill lies, or otherwise less than perfect lies, which require changes to your shot. Mr. Wheatcroft apparently knew he had a thin lie…..his feet had told him. It’s unfortunate that his feet weren’t smart enough to move the ball back in his stance a bit, encouraging him to steepen his swing plane a bit. Whining on Twitter? Gimme a break. Really?

  25. Greg

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:08 pm

    Unfortunately I am on Steve’s side. The bunkers at Glen Abbey are terrible (having played there regularly as I live 10minutes away). They are inconsistent. Some areas of the same bunker will have lots of sand while others will have next to none. Your feet can be nice and fluffy and your shot, not.
    With Clublink (course manager) looking to sell the property for housing, spending money on conditioning is not at the top of the list.

    It’s funny reading all of the comments about this bunker/course from people who have never played there and have no idea what the actual conditions are.

    • Rob

      Jul 25, 2016 at 1:18 pm

      Consider it sold. 3 year “hold” by the Town of Oakville is what keeps this former gem afloat. From the telecast, one could easily see the neglect. Too bad… Glen Abbey played after the Canadian Open was still better than most tracks in the neighbourhood.

    • capecodbeachfront golfer

      Jul 25, 2016 at 1:29 pm

      Your comment about the course being on the market rang very true to me. Yes, I know the weather has been hot and dry but I saw plenty of spots on the course over the 4 days of the tournament that were certainly not tournament quality. I had already commented to some golf friends that it really did have the look of a ‘local’, $700 a year membership type course. Makes zero sense the tournament handlers (that I am sure visited the course ahead of time) did not require a trap as critical as that one on #18 be in better shape. If I was an exempt player I would likely not make it a stop on my schedule next year. C Course for B level players…

  26. Mike Honcho

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:08 pm

    Whining like a weekend hacker. DeLaet’s chipping, sand? More like Shankitis.

  27. birdy

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:07 pm

    i absolutely 100% agree w him that bunkers looked like they lack sand. every 15 handicap is commenting about how you should play less bounce or close the face…..with water behind?

    he made his comments which are very valid…..yet not surprising to see golf hacks everywhere torch him on social media for complaining.

    • dberger

      Jul 25, 2016 at 2:11 pm

      i was one of those hacks commenting. I was listening to sirius radio live. The announcer said it was the weakest part of his game and that he made a poor swing……yep yep….he is one of the worst on the tour at sand saves. and the safest play there is to use less bounce if your worried about the water… less bounce means more chance of digging. curious was that he noted there was very little sand and also noted he thought he could make it. very odd considering the results and his swing. if you realize its firm and note you think you can make it, then why on earth blame the bunker. The only way any of this jives if you didnt realize it was thin or firm and hit your normal shot and blade it cause you were surprised by the lie…..he simply made an excuse and its ok. he is not my enemy.

  28. Mike Honcho

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:06 pm

    Seriously Wheatcroft!? You sound like a weekend hacker, not a tour pro. “The sun was in my eyes.” “Did you see the wind gust push that!” “A tsetse play farted two fairways over.” I’m always on the look for guys to root against, you just made the list. “Next on the tee, Steve Whineaboutit.”

  29. BR

    Jul 25, 2016 at 1:02 pm

    Tough. Maybe he wishes there was more sand so he could have had a buried or fried egg lie. Those were having some rrather poor results as well. Looked more difficult than what he had. Most pros would be happy with a tight lie.

  30. dr. abo

    Jul 25, 2016 at 12:38 pm

    What a choker.. Did he not have a practice round from that bunker at least from Mon to Wed. Lame looser!

  31. Grizz01

    Jul 25, 2016 at 12:36 pm

    Congratulation! You got to find out what everyone else out in the world has to hit out of. Bunkers are suppose to be perfect. Well, they were not originally designed that way. Not until the PGA decided that the bunkers have to be uniform.

    Question: If you felt it in your feet that there was not much sand there… why didn’t you either close the face down a bit so there was not so much bounce… or pull out a different wedge with less bounce and figure a was to hit it? That is why you practice all these shots… right? We normal people have to do this all the time.

  32. Barry

    Jul 25, 2016 at 12:32 pm

    These guy’s are good! but not all of them in the bunkers. No excuse other player’s passed there before him.

  33. Robeli

    Jul 25, 2016 at 12:31 pm

    Everybody played under the same conditions. Sand filled or not.

  34. Nevin

    Jul 25, 2016 at 12:31 pm

    I think the real lesson here is never explain, never complain on Twitter. You will always get fried.

  35. Jm

    Jul 25, 2016 at 12:12 pm

    Don’t hit it in the bunker – if you do then don’t complain about the lie or conditions- it’s not like he was in the fairway or fringe. That’s like complaining about getting a bad lie in deep rough.

    Bunkers are hazards- sucks but thats the breaks.

  36. Ronald Montesano

    Jul 25, 2016 at 12:10 pm

    Was the bunker under-filled?
    –Could have been. I thought his back swing was a bit rushed and brief.

    Was Wheatcroft right in his post-round, Twitter comments?
    –Absolutely. Nice to have tour pros share what we wouldn’t have otherwise known.

    Should he have taken the high road?
    –Nah.

  37. Chip

    Jul 25, 2016 at 11:52 am

    He needs to develop better feel with his feet. If he tried to dig in and felt like it was that thin, why didn’t he just chip it out and just get it on the green. Learn the chip shot from the hard surface

  38. larrybud

    Jul 25, 2016 at 11:47 am

    I don’t think he was “blaming” the bunker situation, just explaining the bunker situation.

    • Chisag

      Jul 25, 2016 at 12:34 pm

      LOL, people don’t like cliche answers but don’t like honesty. A lose-lose for these guys.

  39. mbc

    Jul 25, 2016 at 10:59 am

    Snedeker hit from the same bunker(not the same spot, but close) to 2 ft right after.

    • dberger

      Jul 25, 2016 at 11:50 am

      absolutely…..sand was fine…..you can clearly see he hit way behind the ball and weight was going on the wrong foot when he hit the ball…….there is a reason hes is almost dead last in sand saves….

      i looked up why people blade sand shots, and it confirmed what i already knew. he hit too far behind the ball and bottomed out too early cause weight on right foot. look at the video it was a bad shot….look at snedeker bunker shot.

      • birdy

        Jul 25, 2016 at 1:09 pm

        oh….you looked it up haha just googled it and the shot becomes easy right?

        • Jay

          Jul 25, 2016 at 5:42 pm

          Easy for an average tour player, maybe not for the guy ranker 179 out of 199 is sand saves

  40. farmer

    Jul 25, 2016 at 10:49 am

    Sour grapes. If he knew the sand was thin, there are options other than an explosion type shot.

  41. Tpop

    Jul 25, 2016 at 10:21 am

    I play in bunkers far worse than this on the regular in Arizona. Something you just have to deal with, if he dug his feet in an recognized it he should have played it accordingly

    • Dazza

      Jul 25, 2016 at 12:35 pm

      Me too???? These pros are spoiled. My ball often ends up in unraked bunkers at my local course and the odd footprint too lol

  42. Travis

    Jul 25, 2016 at 10:05 am

    I see where he is coming from and it did look quite sparse. My only issue is that we saw a few other guys go in the same spot and get out ok. A bit telling that the commentators were discussing that he is not a great bunker player right before the shot. Still feel pretty bad though. I have wanted to hide in shame hitting that shot around my regular foursome, imagine doing it in the spotlight like he was in!

  43. Paul

    Jul 25, 2016 at 10:02 am

    A bunker by definition is a hazard. Put rocks in there for all I care. It’s not suppose to be a bail out area.

  44. Ben Alberstadt

    Jul 25, 2016 at 9:56 am

    FWIW: Here’s the PGA Tour’s official agronomy guidelines…

    http://www.pgatouragronomy.com/Tour/WebTemplate/agronomy.nsf/2c47cc31e412bc4985256e6e00287832/7e567e7b6b89ae38852574820075ced8/$FILE/PGA%20TOUR%20Course%20Conditioning%20Guidelines.pdf

    Which read in part: “Ensure through frequent probing that there is a uniform settled [sand] depth of 4 to 5 inches throughout the bunker floor”

    • Bert

      Jul 25, 2016 at 12:39 pm

      Is The Canadian Open a PGA Tour event? Just asking not trying to be smart. If no maybe their standards are bunkers are hazards. I understand the conditions may not have been pristine, but the field had to play the same course. Rule 13; Ball Played As It Lies – same for everyone.

    • Shallowface

      Jul 25, 2016 at 2:27 pm

      What an interesting read that is. Thanks, Ben!

  45. Alex

    Jul 25, 2016 at 9:55 am

    Didn’t say anything about rock hard fairways and being able to hit 350 yards + because of the roll and bounce. Being 70 yards out on 17 and making bogey is where he lost it. Stop blaming the sand. Everyone gets bad lies, and us amateurs get those every time we play.

  46. Mike

    Jul 25, 2016 at 9:45 am

    Certainly a tough way to lose a tournament. He seemed to do everything right from tee to bunker. These players are used to pristine bunkers and a thin one can be quite costly. Too bad…

    • ProAmDuffer

      Jul 25, 2016 at 12:38 pm

      @Mike, he did not lose the tournament he had a remote chance at getting into a play off that’s all.

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