South Africa’s Garrick Higgo got off to a disappointing start at the PGA Championship. Out of all the mistakes a PGA Tour pro can make, Higgo possibly made the most rookie one.

Higgo, featuring at his fourth PGA Championship, started off the major on the wrong foot. Even before his first shot, he had a penalty to his name as he failed to keep up with the time.

Higgo had a 7:18 am tee time on No.1, but the World No. 85 arrived a minute late. This resulted in a penalty of two strokes, which was informed to him by an official on his arrival.

The rules are clear. Rule 5.3 states that a player is given a two-shot penalty when they arrive no more than five minutes late to their tee time. Exceeding that time frame could possibly lead to disqualification as well.

It was reported that Higgo was present on the putting green but not “within the area defined as the starting point at his starting time,” according to the PGA of America. Thus, the PGA Tour pro got the “general penalty” under Rule 5.3a.

Higgo was to begin at that time, alongside Michael Brennan and Shaun Micheel. Thereafter, the 27-year-old shot a par on the opening hole. Due to the penalty, it turned into a double-bogey six.

However, the South African followed his opening double bogey with six pars and two birdies, closing out on a level-par total of 35.

At the end of the day, Higgo might’ve got lucky - he escaped disqualification by a few minutes. The two-stroke penalty gave him a bumpy start, but a couple of good scores can certainly make the crowd at Aronimink forget the early mishap.

Higgo is looking for his first top-40 finish in a major. Let’s take an overall look at his record on the PGA Tour.

Garrick Higgo's Record On The PGA Tour

Garrick Higgo has a total of eight professional wins to his name, with two coming on the PGA Tour.

Higgo’s first win on the tour was the Palmetto Championship, which he secured in 2021. He put up an 11-under par, and that was enough to earn him a one-stroke victory.

Last year, the 27-year-old registered his second victory at the Corales Puntacana Championship, which was also a one-shot victory. 

The South African’s best finish in a major has been a tie for 47th position. This finish was at The Open Championship four years back.

Despite the opening penalty, Higgo will look to improve his majors record at the Aronimink this week.  

What are your opinions on Higgo’s late arrival? Let us know in the comments.

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Written by

Avishek Sarkar

Edited by

Souvik Roy