AUGUSTA, Ga. -- Tiger Woods got a bad break when his approach shot to the 15th green bounced off the flagstick and into the water.
He may have also taken a bad drop.
Masters officials were reviewing on Saturday morning Woods' drop on the 15th hole Friday and whether it was in the proper spot; if it was deemed to be improper, he would be disqualified for signing an incorrect scorecard.
Because Woods signed his scorecard for a 1-under-par 71 without adding the 1-stroke penalty, he would be disqualified because he put his 6 on a scorecard instead of a 7.
Woods had 87 yards to the hole for his third shot and saw his ball hit the flagstick and then roll back off the green and into the water.
Under Rule 26-1, Woods had three options at the yellow-staked (not lateral) hazard, which is a pond that fronts the green:
• He could have played from a designated drop area, which he chose not to do because he did not like the lie.
• He could drop the ball, keeping the point where it last crossed the margin of the water between the hole and the spot on which the ball would be dropped. Since the ball entered the water well left of Woods' position from the fairway, it would seem he did not choose this option -- which would have allowed him to drop on a straight line as far back as he wanted.
• Or, he could return to the original spot from which he played, and drop "as nearly as possible,'' from where he played the third shot.
This is the option Woods took, and the question appears to be: did Woods drop the ball as near as possible to his original spot?
After the round, Woods said: "I went back to where I played it from, but I went 2 yards further back and I took, tried to take 2 yards off the shot of what I felt I hit.''
Is 2 yards close enough?
On a CBS-TV highlights show late Friday night, analyst David Feherty showed the replay and questioned the legality of the drop.
An Augusta National spokesman would only say Saturday morning that the situation is being reviewed by the Masters rules committee.