WATCH: The famous 2023 putt that took 34 seconds to land – how long can you wait?

Lee Hodges’ notorious 2023 PGA Championship putt earned him a one-stroke penalty and is still dividing golf.

Some feel that he is within his rights to wait for the ball to drop, while others say that delaying play is unacceptable.

The officers were impatient, but Hodges was not.

A professional golfer on the PGA Tour is only allowed to leave his ball on the edge of the cup for 10 seconds before needing to use an extra stroke to knock it in.

Before the 10 second clock starts, the player and his playing partner can decide on a “reasonable” time.

At the PGA Championship Hodges and Jordan Spieth partnered, and that rule was put to the test during a crazy par putt on the 17th green.

On his putt, Hodges hit the fairway, but the ball sat on the lip and rolled around the rim for a total of 35 seconds. It finally decided to succumb to gravity and threw itself into the cup, and the officials were very happy.

The PGA Championship Rules Committee released the following statement:

“During the 17th hole, Hodges played his first putt on the edge of the hole and after walking up to the hole, behind his ball, he waited more than 10 seconds. The ball then falls into the hole, after the 10 second limit given in the Law. As a result, Hodges received a one-stroke penalty, under Rule 13.3a, and the ball was blocked.

According to rule 13.3.a, if the golf ball hangs over the hole:

“The player is given enough time to reach the hole and another ten seconds to wait to see if the ball will fall into the hole.
If the ball falls into the hole during this waiting period, the player is out of the previous stroke.
If the ball does not enter the hole during this waiting time:
The ball is considered to be at rest.
If the ball falls into the hole before it is played, the player has gone out the previous stroke, but has a one-penalty penalty added to the score for the hole. “