CHEAT TO COMPETE?
The New England Patriots and Tom Brady plan to appeal their various punishments from the NFL over Deflategate, and who is surprised? The natural order of things is to get caught, deny the offense, appeal the offense, and then say the offense was never intended in the first place.
Baseball has had its spitballs, its corked bats, its widespread use of steroids. Basketball fines players for flopping (trying to draw fouls). Football’s history is rife with Stick-Um on the hands of receivers, silicone spray on the jerseys of linemen to mitigate holding, the artificial pumping-up of sound in the stadium.
Then there’s golf. Golf asks its participants to call penalties on themselves. Your weekend hackers probably (probably???) kick the odd ball back into play but the professionals abide by the code (in general, sometimes when they are confronted with the infraction).
David Toms pulled out of the 2005 British Open over a possible violation with his putter that even videotape couldn’t prove. Tom Kite took a one-stroke penalty in the 1978 Hall of Fame classic when he lined up a putt and saw the ball move a fraction of an inch. He lost by one stroke. And what did he say afterwards? “If you don’t play by the rules, you are not playing golf.” During the 1925 U.S. Open, Bobby Jones addressed a ball in the rough, then saw it move slightly. He called a one-shot penalty on himself though no one else witnessed the violation. Credited for his willingness to do the right thing, Jones answered: “You might as well praise a man for not robbing a bank.”
Consider the United States Military Academy’s honor code: “A Cadet will not lie, cheat, steal or tolerate those who do.” Tolerating a breach is equivalent to committing it.
There is such a thing as honor. Rare as it may be.
Post By: Larry Weisman, a longtime sportswriter for USA TODAY, blogs for Twistity.com. Follow him on Twitter @MrLarryWeisman .
American Idol Cancelled After Season 15
-
All-Rounder Stokes Aims for Recovery Ahead of Upcoming India Test Series England Test captain Ben Stokes has announced that...
-
NBA Star Penalized for Inappropriate Gesture During Victory Over Trail Blazers Philadelphia 76ers’ star center, Joel Embiid, has been...
-
Spanish Football Chief Faces Scrutiny Over World Cup Incident The Spanish government announced on Tuesday that it has submitted...
-
University of Houston Mourns the Loss of Former Basketball Star Reggie Chaney The University of Houston community is deeply...
-
Former President Donald Trump Leaves Republicans Speculating on His Debate Strategy Former President Donald Trump has definitively confirmed that...
-
As Neymar’s desire for a new chapter surfaces, the football world debates whether he will return to Barcelona’s embrace...
-
The football legend mesmerizes with a dazzling display and debuts a Wakanda Lionel Messi wowed fans once again with...
-
Andrew Wiggins Returns: Ready to Help Warriors Defend Championship Title! Golden State Warriors forward Andrew Wiggins has returned to...
-
Scotland’s rugby team has been dealt a significant blow. Scotland’s rugby team has been dealt a significant blow with...
-
Diaz injured his knee while the Puerto Rican team was celebrating its victory. During Wednesday night’s game in the...
-
Number 16 has joined the legendary likes of Numbers 8 and 24. Despite retiring from the NBA in 2021,...
-
Tatum was slapped with his first career ejection after two technical fouls. Monday night was a rough one for...