Joaquin Niemann was assessed a two-stroke penalty for throwing a club during the first round of the U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills, the USGA announced Friday morning. The incident, which occurred on the par-4 6th hole Thursday night, was deemed “serious misconduct” under Rule 1.2b.
Niemann was even par through 14 holes when his round unraveled. He hit two consecutive tee shots out of bounds on the 6th, then found a native area with his third. After the horn sounded to suspend play for darkness, Niemann was lying 6 in the middle of the fairway. Before walking off, he requested free relief from fire ants near his ball in the fescue, which was denied. Per a witness account reported by the New York Times, Niemann then kicked a spotter’s flag and threw his sand wedge approximately 50 yards toward the edge of the course. A police officer retrieved the club and returned it to him.
The USGA announced the penalty Friday morning, citing Rule 1.2b of the Rules of Golf, which allows tournaments to set conduct standards and issue penalties up to and including disqualification. Niemann was given the general penalty of two strokes rather than being disqualified.
“I’m not someone that likes to be in that behavior,” Niemann said Friday. “I’m the first one to judge myself when I don’t behave on the golf course. Yeah, that was a misbehave from my part. I felt like a little bit extra penalized with two-shot penalty, but I think it is what it is. I think I’m going to learn from it.”
Niemann returned Friday morning to finish the 6th, eventually making an 11 after the two-stroke penalty was applied. His opening round of 78 left him well outside the cut line heading into Round 2.
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Before meeting with the media, Niemann and several team members, including veteran instructor Pete Cowen, met with Craig Winter, the USGA’s senior director of rules, behind the practice range for nearly 10 minutes. Cowen disputed the decision publicly afterward.
“It’s arbitrary,” Cowen said, “because they picked him out of a load of people who threw clubs yesterday and give him a two-shot penalty. It depends on whether you like him or you don’t like him; it’s two shots if you don’t like him, or it’s not two shots because he’s a decent guy or he hasn’t thrown it as far or whatever. So, you can’t do that. It’s either got to be two shots for throwing a club for everybody or not.”
Cowen said he witnessed three other players throw clubs on Thursday and confirmed there was no video of Niemann’s incident. He also noted no appeal process was available to Niemann. According to another member of Niemann’s team, the USGA’s explanation included the phrase “not all throws are equal.”
After being informed of the penalty, Niemann spent nearly half an hour working to reset between rounds, hitting only a few range shots and a couple of putts. He then birdied five of his first six holes en route to a 5-under 65, matching the low score of the morning wave alongside Collin Morikawa.
“They blew the horn but after I hit that shot, all the frustration came inside me,” Niemann said. “Had my club in my hand and I couldn’t resist to throw it away. There was no one there but I’m not proud of it.”
Niemann’s 65 moved him to 3 over for the championship, one stroke above the projected cut line. He would be the first player in 97 years to make 10 or worse on a single hole and still make the cut at the U.S. Open.
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“Everything was on,” Niemann said of his second round. “I hit great tee shots. I went out with a pretty aggressive mindset, so it worked out.”
