Sometimes you have to wonder how these things happen. According to reports, U.S. Amateur champ Richie Ramsay won’t be playing at Bay Hill this week, despite an invite from Arnold Palmer, due to some sort of administrative hiccup over paperwork he was expected to file:
“I’m disappointed not to be playing in the Arnold Palmer Invitational,” Ramsay admitted yesterday. “But am grateful to have received an invitation to the event. I will now use this time to concentrate on my preparations for the Masters as well as looking forward to playing in the Georgia Cup at the end of this month.”
Apparently the problem was somehow Ramsay’s doing, but you’d think a major PGA Tour event like this would take care to make sure the U.S. Amateur champ gets in the field after it offers him an invite.
Strange though, that the Scotsman story on the affair says minds might have been changed if Scottish national coach Ian Rae hadn’t gone traveling. Of course they don’t explain how Rae would have changed the situation…
Since the deadline for handing in the required forms had already passed, the Tour felt it had no option but to tell the young Scot he wouldn’t be playing with Tiger Woods & Co this week. With Ian Rae, the Scottish Golf Union’s national coach, working in Australia this week, it turned out to be impossible to change the minds of the organisers at Bay Hill and Ramsay was left feeling frustrated.
