Joaquin Niemann enjoyed a superb ending to his roller-coaster week at the US Open, having been involved in controversy earlier in the tournament.
Niemann fell victim to the new code of conduct introduced for major championships, when he threw his club in frustration during the opening round.
The Chilean launched his sand wedge on the sixth hole after twice hitting tee shots out of bounds and finding his ball in an awkward lie.
Niemann received a two-shot penalty for his outburst at Shinnecock Hills, where his nine was upped to an 11 on the par-four hole.
But it wasn’t until after he had signed his scorecard that a USGA rule official asked to speak to him about the incident, which Niemann has now discussed following his fourth round on Sunday.
Joaquin Niemann reveals what USGA rule officials said about his two-shot penalty
Niemann was asked if he asked why they waited to tell him about his penalty at the US Open, and why they didn’t do it at the moment of the incident.
He said: “What they told me was they actually saw it and then they probably went back in the afternoon or in the morning and talked with the committee and the different rules officials or I don’t know.
“They took a decision from there. But yeah, it was their decision. It probably took a while. I don’t know.”
Niemann went on to card an eight-over 78 on Thursday, but bounced back superbly with a five-under 65 on Friday to make the cut.
The 27-year-old followed that up with a 72 on Saturday, and finished Sunday in and around the top 10 with a 66.
Joaquin Niemann sheds light on his frustration after US Open punishment
A handful of other players were guilty of club throws and outbursts in the previous major championships this year, but Niemann has been the first to be penalized.
When asked if he thinks he’s being made an example of in that light, he said: “To be honest, yes.
“I was not trying to offend anyone. I think it was something more… it was more something kind of like against me. I was frustrated.
“I had my expectations, which are always super high. I was playing good golf. I knew it was going to be a tough week, a long week, a challenging week.
“After seeing that and knowing that the best score I could do was an 8, it kind of frustrated me a lot.
“I’m not happy doing that. I’m not proud about throwing a golf club. I get I deserve it in a way; I don’t know.
“But there’s nothing I can do. I feel like I learned from it. To be honest, it was a good throw.
“I never try to offend anybody, not even the volunteers that were there. I know they do their job and they put the flag and they do the best they can.
“They don’t pay them to be there; they do that because they like it. I was frustrated; I kicked the flag. I didn’t get p—– because I got a fire ant there.
“After everything went through, went back to those tee shots, and after remembering those two tee shots, I just threw the club.
“It was just frustration, but it’s more because of the passion that I have to get better and better.”
Niemann’s frustrations were certainly understandable, with the Chilean having arrived at the sixth hole on level par.
But the USGA clearly felt they had to make a strong statement, which they did, with Paul McGinley welcoming Niemann’s US Open penalty.
The player should definitely learn from the incident given the punishment he received, particularly what could have been for him in the final leaderboard had he managed to keep his emotions in check.
Read more: Joaquin Niemann’s coach speaks out after USGA issue penalty for club throwing controversy
