One wispy leaf costs Carl Pettersson two strokes

We've written in this space before about the rather overly-officious nature of golf's rules — you know, like the ones that can get you disqualified if you fail to pile sand properly on your ball when replacing it in its lie. Naturally, every time anyone broaches the question of whether maybe, just maybe, the rules of golf might be verging on the absurd, along come the usual troupe of bureaucratic ninnies to trumpet that golf is great because of its rules! No, golf is great despite many of its rules ... and will remain great no matter how hard the rules twits try to deny basic common sense.

Case in point: the above video starring one Carl Pettersson. On his backswing on the first hole, he tipped a leaf. A leaf! And for that mortal sin, because he moved a loose impediment in a hazard while his ball was in the same hazard, he received a two-stroke penalty ... but only after rules officials Zaprudered the film to be able to tell if he actually did tick the leaf. Pettersson was informed of his grave breach on the fourth hole, and though he tried to protest, the writing was already on the wall ... and, more importantly, on the two strokes of his scorecard.

Look, we're not denying the need for rules. And yes, as the rules do exist in their present form, then yes, Pettersson was correctly penalized. But there has to be some measure of common sense employed here. There is absolutely zero advantage gained, zero impact on the game itself. (Not that it would have mattered in the face of Rory McIlroy's assault, but the principle remains the same.) Pettersson would go on to finish T3 at -4, while the two strokes would have given him sole possession of second place.

Sure, you can hide behind the idea that any rule is a valid rule, and every application of a rule is a valid application. But in situations like this, with a major championship on the line, there's absolutely no excuse for blowing a hole in Pettersson's round for such a ticky-tack foul. So if you can figure a way to defend this, you've got a job waiting for you at the USGA.