Players seem OK with Woods penalty instead of DQ

AUGUSTA, Ga. – Tiger Woods still has a chance to win the Masters and most of his fellow players seem OK with that.

Woods was assessed a two-stroke penalty Saturday before he went out for the third round of the Masters, a ruling that stirred plenty of debate because of the way it was handled by Augusta National.

Woods could’ve been disqualified for signing an improper scorecard.

Steve Stricker was among those who believe club officials got it right, since they viewed a replay of the improper drop while Woods was still on the course Friday and initially ruled he had done nothing wrong.

Later, Woods conceded in several media interviews that he dropped his ball 2 yards behind the spot of his original shot at the 15th hole, after it ricocheted off the flag stick and into the water in front of the green.

“They addressed it before he actually signed his card, and from what I understand they said go ahead and sign your card,” said Stricker, who was one shot behind Woods. “If they would have come up to him before he signed his card, he would have said, ‘OK, well, let’s go through it, and you’re right. I did take two steps back, it’s a two-shot penalty, and I signed for two shots higher.’ End of story.”