“Last time I was here it was my birthday and I got DQ’d” - PGA Tour player tells Collin Morikawa about a rule infringement that happened a decade ago 

Collin Morikawa has not only enjoyed an excellent tournament at The Sentry but also the company of his colleagues. One of them, Camilo Villegas, shared with him the story of how he was disqualified on that very stage on his birthday.

Villegas reportedly told Morikawa:

"Last time I was here it was my birthday and I got DQ'd."

At the end of the first round at the Plantation Course of the Kapalua Resort, Camilo Villegas talked to the press and among the topics discussed was the story he had told the day before to Collin Morikawa.

This is the story told by Villegas (via Golf.com):

"I was talking with Collin Morikawa in the locker room yesterday, actually. I said, 'Hey, last time I was here it was my birthday and I got DQ’d'. And he goes, 'Really? What happened?' And then I told him just kind of a little funky rule there and it happened."

"I went to bed that night, I remember perfectly, and woke up in the morning, go to get a little warm up, Kelly Tilghman [former Golf Channel reporter] is there in the gym and she says, 'I think he’s getting DQ’d'. And I’m like, 'Really? What’s going to happen?'"

The event occurred at the 2011 Tournament of Champions (then sponsored by Hyundai). Camilo Villegas executed a bad chip on a hazard on the 15th hole, so the ball came rolling back to his feet. The Colombian then cleared the path of the still moving ball.

With this action, he unconsciously violated rule 23-1 of USGA, which prohibits such action. The curious thing is that this was not detected until a fan saw it on TV and contacted the officials of the event. As Villegas had already signed his score card, he was penalized with a disqualification.

Collin Morikawa has also had his share of penalties for rules violations. A few weeks ago, he was penalized two strokes at the Hero World Challenge for using unauthorized handwritten notes for guidance.

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Collin Morikawa at The Sentry 2024

After the first two rounds at the Plantation Course at Kapalua Resort, Collin Morikawa is deep in title contention. Morikawa is in T5 with a score of 14 under, two strokes behind leader Scottie Scheffler.

Collin Morikawa has yet to stumble on his first bogey at The Sentry 2024, with one eagle and 12 birdies. His best day was the first, when he shot an 8-under 65.

Morikawa will tee off in the 15th group on day three, with tee time at 2:21 pm (Eastern time). The two-time major champion was grouped with Byeong Hun An and Matt Fitzpatrick.

World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler leads the leaderboard after the first 36 holes. Tyrrell Hatton, Sung-Jae Im and Brendon Todd are tied for second place, one stroke behind the leader.