Back in 2016, Brittany Lang had defeated Sweden’s Anna Nordqvist to win her first major title at the U.S. Women’s Open. However, the victory came at the back of a controversy.

With both players tied at 6-under-par 282 after the closing round, a three-hole playoff was on the way. Things got even more interesting as well as controversial at the second hole.

Nordqvist had hit her tee shot into a fairway bunker at the 17th hole. While preparing to play out of it, the Swede grounded her 5-iron on a few grains of sand. It wasn’t visible to the naked eye nor on live television. However, on the high-definition replays, the officials spotted the incident. The 9-time LPGA Tour winner violated Rule 13.4b, and a two-stroke penalty was imposed. 

Following the mishap, Lang said, "You never want to win with a penalty or something like that happen, especially to Anna, who is a friend of mine and a great player and a classy girl. But it's unfortunate. It's part of the game, and it happened that way."

However, reflecting on her success, she mentioned, "I think this is absolutely huge, a huge momentum builder to say you won the U.S. Open," Lang said. "I think this is a huge, a huge step in the right direction for my career." 

After the Swede's two-stroke penalty, Lang sealed the win with a short par putt on the final playoff hole, while Nordqvist made bogey to lose by three shots.

Although Nordqvist did not question the penalty, she did point out the delay in informing her by the USGA.

Nordqvist’s Side Of The Story

USGA official John Bodenhamer was tipped about Nordqvist’s violation on the 2nd playoff hole by the broadcasters, FOX. Meticulous investigation and endless replays took a lot of time. As a result, the co-leaders were informed quite late.

Reflecting on the incident, Nordqvist said, “The USGA official came up to me after I hit my (third) shot and said we've been reviewing the shot, you grounded your club in the bunker on 17, and that's a two-shot penalty.”

The news got to Nordqvist after she hit her third shot at 18 and before Lang did. 

“I wish the USGA would have told me [about the infraction] a little bit earlier. I don't know if it would have changed the outcome, but it certainly would have changed my aggressiveness into the 18th pin.” she added.

Due to the penalty, Nordqvist would’ve ideally gone aggressive for the birdie but was informed late. On the other hand, Lang shifted to a safer approach as she was aware that a par was enough to secure the major.

"It certainly changed her game plan," Nordqvist said about Lang. "But, you know, hopefully we can all learn from it, and hopefully we can all get better."

The USGA faced severe backlash due to its handling of the situation. Things could have panned out differently if the penalty had been notified on time.

But do you think the USGA handled the situation appropriately? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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Written by

Avishek Sarkar

Edited by

Souvik Roy