Tag: Monday Q

Second pro golfer suspended by PGA Tour for gambling makes public apology

India is banned from PGA Tour-sanctioned events for six months until March of 2024.

Two Korn Ferry Tour players were recently suspended by the PGA Tour for placing bets on pro golfers.

Jake Staiano was suspended from PGA Tour-sanctioned competition for three months, and was the first player to discuss his violation on Ryan French’s Any Given Monday podcast earlier this week.

Vince India was the other pro who got suspended. He’s banned from competing in any PGA Tour-sanctioned event for six months, from Sept. 18 through March 17, 2024.

India, 34, has played in 176 events during his career on the Korn Ferry Tour. This season he made 22 starts, missed 11 cuts and withdrew from one event. His best result was a pair of T-21 finishes. His total career earnings are $662,823.

He posted an apology on social media on Tuesday, admitting he knowingly violated the Tour’s Integrity Program.

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Player suspended by PGA Tour for gambling explains his side of the story, how he got caught

Staiano made four bets worth $116.20, three of which were on a made-for-TV exhibition match.

Back in May, Jake Staiano got a text from someone at the PGA Tour saying he was involved in an integrity violation, but he didn’t think anything of it and figured his dad or caddie might’ve triggered a rogue warning.

During the week of the Korn Ferry Tour’s event at TPC Colorado in July, Staiano was approached by someone hired by the Tour to investigate the issue. A month later he spoke with the investigator for nearly an hour to confirm the four bets he placed, totaling $116.20.

After the first KFT playoff event in Boise, a rep from the Tour reached out to Staiano to let him know a decision was imminent. The penalties range from a slap on the wrist to losing your ability to compete in any Tour event, and Staiano thought he’d get the former. A week later he got an email from PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan saying he was suspended for three months for violating the PGA Tour’s “Integrity Program,” which clearly lays out that any golfer with professional status cannot bet on golf.

Wanting to get his side of the story out there, Staiano joined everyone’s favorite Monday qualifier Ryan French on his Any Given Monday podcast to discuss what happened and where he goes from here.

 

Staiano admitted he’d taken the course for the integrity program three times but made no excuses when owning up to his error.

“I understand the principles, I understand you can’t bet. They laid it out perfectly,” Staiano said. “I didn’t deny gambling.”

Staiano placed a $25 bet on Bryson DeChambeau to make a birdie on a par 5 in a PGA Tour event in 2021, then put three other bets on DeChambeau’s match against Brooks Koepka in November of 2021 because he didn’t view the made-for-TV exhibition as a professional golf event.

“I’ve accepted my punishment. It is what it is. Fair or not, people can argue that, but one of my biggest things is I want to make sure other guys understand exactly what happened so that they don’t make the same thing mistake,” Staiano said. “Because it could be career-altering. I’m treating it like it’s not, but you never know, I might never get a chance to get back to Q-School. I don’t want that to happen to other people because it sucks, it’s tough. It’s a tough situation, it’s something that I have to live with, but I feel like not only myself but other people can learn from what I did.”

For more on Staiano’s appeal, and how the Tour figured out he placed bets two years ago, listen to the full episode of Any Given Monday here.

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Caddie who Monday Q’d into 3M Open shares special moment with boss on final hole

“It was a dream.”

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BLAINE, Minn. — Erik van Rooyen’s eyes welted with tears as he stood next to his caddie in the interview area.

Alex Gaugert was holding his daughter in his left arm while trying to find words to describe what his past few days had been like. Gaugert’s family stood behind a handful of reporters watching as he detailed his week.

Gaugert, who Monday qualified into the 3M Open, is van Rooyen’s full-time caddie. This week, however, he played alongside his boss for the first two rounds at TPC Twin Cities.

“It was a dream,” Gaugert said. “It happened fast. Monday qualifiers, you know, never done one and to get through was pretty cool. Then the Tour allowed us to play together. That was really memorable and something we’ll never forget.

“I know after I qualified there was definitely a few tears shed and it was really, really cool. And all the support, all the caddies and even the players, it was nice to get that feeling where everybody’s kind of trying to — everyone’s lifting you up and telling you ‘good job.’ It was cool to kind of have the light shine on you for a week, so it’s fun.”

Added van Rooyen: “I was talking to a few people earlier in the week, when we were playing college together, this was what we were all talking about. Oh, man, we’re gonna play the PGA Tour together, we’re gonna room together, play practice rounds together. We get to share that a little bit with him on the bag, but with him playing a tournament, it was really, really cool.”

The duo were teammates at Minnesota from 2010-13. Gaugert became van Rooyen’s full-time caddie in 2019.

Gaugert finished at 6 over for the week, following an opening 6-over 77 with an even-par performance on Friday. Meanwhile, van Rooyen shot 3-under 68 on Friday and sits at 3 under for the week, right on the projected cut line as the afternoon wave gets underway.

On their final hole Friday, the duo embraced, celebrating an incredible week.

“You don’t get these special moments every single week,” Gaugert said. “This game’s hard and it was — it’s cool to share that with my best friend, something I’ll never forget.”

The moment was also special for van Rooyen, as it makes him appreciate playing on the PGA Tour even more. As far as Gaugert’s job security down the road?

“Oh, yeah, his job’s safe,” van Rooyen said. “Trust me, we’ve been through some highs and we’ve been through some lows together. Nothing can shake us, so we’re all good.”