Hayes disqualifies himself for using prototype ball

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Nov. 21, 2008
By PGATOUR.COM news services

As if q-school weren't grueling enough; imagine how you'd feel if the reason you didn't make it to the next stage is because you played the game the way it was supposed to be played -- honestly.

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J.P. Hayes was forced to leave q-school early after calling a penalty on himself that led to a disqualification.

During the second stage of qualifying at Deerwood Country Club in Kingwood, Texas, J.P. Hayes -- a 43-year-old Wisconsin native -- policed himself into a disqualification when he played a ball not approved for competition on the 12th hole of his first round. It was the first DQ of his career and it will keep him from earning a full-time exemption on the PGA TOUR in 2009.

"It was a Titleist prototype, and somehow it had gotten into my bag," Hayes told the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. "It had been four weeks since Titleist gave me some prototype balls and I tested them. I have no idea how or why it was still in there."

A player must play the same model ball throughout his round. When Hayes discovered the ball his caddie handed him on the 12th tee was not the same model Titleist he began his round with, he called a two-shot penalty on himself. It was not until Hayes was in his hotel room that night that he realized the ball he played also might not conform to USGA rules.

"I called an official in Houston that night and said 'I think I may have a problem'," Hayes said, according to the Journal Sentinel. "He said they'd call Titleist the next, day. I pretty much knew at that point I was going to be disqualified."

The top 20 finishers at Deerwood advanced to the final stage of q-school next month in California. Had Hayes kept up the kind of golf he opened with (rounds of 74-71), he might have stood a good chance of being in that top 20. Instead, Hayes chose to reveal his mistake, take a DQ and return home to Wisconsin with no chance of earning a card for '09.

It was a tough year for Hayes in 2008; he made just seven cuts in 26 starts and his best finish was also his only top 10 -- a tie for ninth at the John Deere Classic. With $312,152 in earnings this season, he finished 176th on the money list -- well outside the range for even a partial TOUR membership for next year. Q-school was his last shot at full playing privileges for 2009.

He will, however, be eligible for about 10-12 tournaments next year given his veteran status and career earnings of more than $7 million. He'll also be eligible for sponsor's exemptions.

But Hayes isn't dwelling on what he lost in Texas. "I would say everybody out here (on the TOUR) would have done the same thing," Hayes told the Journal-Sentinel. "I'm kind of at a point in my career where if I have a light year, it might be a good thing. I'm looking forward to playing less and spending more time with my family.

"This isn't the end of the world."