Former US Amateur champion, Curtis Luck, was disqualified on Thursday after missing his first-round tee time at a Korn Ferry Tour Finals event, with an extraordinary blunder meaning that the Australian will rely on results not costing him a potential PGA Tour card.
The 27-year-old mistakenly thought his tee time was 10 minutes later than it really was at Hillcrest Country Club, which is hosting the Albertsons Boise Open in the first of four Korn Ferry Tour Final events.
Officials tried to look for Luck in vain and he was promptly disqualified from the event leaving him No. 59 on the Korn Ferry Tour points list, with only the final top 30 earning a PGA Tour card.
Originally, Luck was scheduled to tee off at 7.45am, but the Australian thought it was actually 7.55am. After the incident, the Korn Ferry Tour rules committee confirmed: "Curtis Luck missed his first-round tee time (7:45 am) and did not arrive within the five additional minutes allotted under Rule 5.3a, and was subsequently disqualified. Luck did not meet any of the three exceptions within Rule 5.3a.”
Luck, who has made 38 PGA Tour appearances with career earnings of a round $1.5 million, told Golf Digest: "At the end of the day, it’s nobody’s fault but mine. Probably just what happens when you’re on week seven; a bit tired and misread tee time.”
While Luck seemed relatively relaxed about his mistake, it heightens the pressure as he has only three more events to crack the top 30 and earn a PGA Tour return. However, Luck added: “For some people, this would be a really big issue because everybody out here is trying to play for a PGA Tour card.
"I’m not taking it that badly, to be honest. My theory is Columbus (the Nationwide Children’s Hospital Championship, which he won in 2020) is where I’m looking to do the most damage.
"I'll just show up in Nashville and then Columbus and keep throwing everything I've got at the playoff. Columbus is my favourite on the Korn Ferry Tour, so I just have to keep pressing on."
