Was Harrington DQ a Result of Online Job Scam?

ACCORDING TO AN ANONYMOUS source, ARMCHAIR GOLF has learned that an online job scam may be contributing to the rash of rules violations reported by television viewers. A few weeks ago, Camilo Villegas was disqualified at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii. Padraig Harrington is the latest victim. The Irishman was disqualified on Friday at the Abu Dhabi Golf Championship.

Some observers have thought these frequent rules incidents were coincidental. But ARMCHAIR GOLF has learned that something more sinister may be afoot, an online job scam that has armchair rules officials glued to their television sets. Work-at-home scams are nothing new. Yet, with unemployment rates at a 30-year high, people are much more susceptible to questionable money-making ploys.

The source tipped off ARMCHAIR GOLF to one of the latest scams that is apparently landing in email in boxes around the globe:

GET PAID HUNDREDS TO WATCH TV!
Join one of the fastest-growing work-from-home opportunities. Become an independent golf rules official and make hundreds of dollars per month watching golf on television. You will be recognized as an expert on the Rules of Golf and uphold the honor of the game by reporting rules violations to tour officials and other governing golf bodies. No experience necessary. Get started today! (URL withheld.)

“I’ve seen these work-from-home deals before and knew it was probably too good to be true,” the source said after not receiving a payout for reporting a violation.

“But when you’ve run out of work options like I had, you’ll try just about anything. Now I feel guilty about what I did. I’ve stopped watching golf completely.”

Apparently, tour players aren’t the only victims in these rules-obsessed times. So are innocent golf fans with too much time on their hands.

−The Armchair Golfer

(This is an ARMCHAIR GOLF spoof.)

(Photo credit: cmiked, Flickr, Creative Commons license)