Avondale - The PGA Tour meted out its first slow-play penalty since 1995 in Thursday's first round of the Zurich Classic of New Orleans.
Tour rookie Brian Campbell and Argentina's Miguel Angel Carballo, playing together in the two-man team format new for the event this year, were both charged with a bad time and were assessed a one-shot penalty as a team, leaving them with a two-over-par score of 74 for the first round.
"I kind of felt it was a little unfair," Campbell told GolfChannel.com prior to the second round. "But nothing we could do about it."
Campbell, who with Carballo got into the field as an alternate, said their foursome was slowed by the other two players, local club professionals Kyle Ramey and Phil Schmitt.
"I hate to say it but they were struggling through the first five holes and we got way out of position," he said.
But after first Carballo and then Campbell failed to play shots within the 40 seconds allowed under the tour's pace of play policy they were informed at the 14th hole on Thursday they would be penalised a stroke.
The last time a slow-play penalty was handed out at a regular PGA Tour event was to Glen Day in 1995.