Commissioner Tim Finchem said this week there will be no changes to the PGA TOUR's on-course phone policy for fans.

“We’re committed to making it work,” Finchem told Bloomberg News while playing in a pro-am round at the Champions Tour’s Regions Tradition event in Birmingham, Ala. “If we get to a point where we don't have an acceptable competitive environment, we’ll do whatever we need to do, but I don’t see that happening.”

At last week's the Memorial Tournament presented by Nationwide Insurance, Finchem received a text message from Phil Mickelson during Thursday's first round about the lack of control by fans who were using their cell phones. Mickelson withdrew after the round, citing exhaustion as the reason.

In 2011, the TOUR began allowing fans to bring cell phones to tournaments, designating areas away from play where the phones could be used but also reminding fans that they should not be used closer to the action. In addition, phones should be on vibrate or silent at all times.

“We know, by virtue of the fact that we don’t get many ringers, that the vast majority of fans will use good etiquette,” Finchem told Bloomberg News. “We have to be aggressive to some extent when the policy is violated.”

The commissioner is hoping that fans will adhere to the rules about cell phones.

“It is incumbent upon the fans to help us out here so we can maintain this policy and make the experience very positive,” he told Bloomberg News. “Being able to keep their phones with them is part of that.”

---

CELL PHONE GUIDELINES
If you bring a cell phone to a PGA TOUR event, please follow these guidelines:

> Ringers must be in silent mode at all times

> Calls can be made and received only in designated areas

> Receiving and sending text messages is permitted on the course, away from play

> NO video recording is permitted anywhere, any time

> Photos may NOT be taken during competition rounds