Golf

Golfer’s ‘Tin Cup’ moment: Gets disqualified after running out of balls

“Tin Cup” would have been proud.

Pro golfer Eddie Pepperell ran out of golf balls during the third round of the Turkish Airlines Open on Saturday after suffering a moment that was eerily similar to the well-known golfing movie.

Pepperell, ranked No. 47 in the world, was 2 over for the round after dropping shots on the second and third. He then hit his approach to the next into the water guarding the green on the par-5 fourth hole at the Montgomerie Maxx Royal course. In a scene reminiscent of the “Tin Cup” film, Pepperell had several more attempts — even his caddie could not say for certain whether it was four or five — before informing playing partners Martin Kaymer and George Coetzee that he had run out of balls.

Contacted by text in his hotel by Golfworld, Pepperell would only say there was “nothing to add really.” He also admitted he was unsure how many balls he had launched into the drink.

Pepperell — disqualified from the event for “failure to complete a hole,” — could face a fine in the future, according to the website. Matthias Schwab, who shot a third-round 66, has a three-shot lead in the $7 million European Tour event.

“Eddie hit his shots to the green then came over to tell us he had run out of balls,” Kaymer, a former U.S. Open champion told reporters. “Then he walked off. He was quick, so it was hard to keep track. He did not ask if he could borrow one. It did not look like he wanted to play.”

Kaymer — who said he wasn’t sure how many shots Pepperell took — added that it the only time a blowup like that happen in golf was during that classic movie.

The 1996 film starring Kevin Costner was about a down-on-his-luck driving range instructor named Roy “Tin Cup” McAvoy who blew a shot to win the U.S. Open when he kept hitting the ball in the water on the par 5 18th, the final hole of the tournament.

Here’s an abbreviated clip from that iconic scene: