US golf prodigy Li to maintain amateur status – USGA

US golf prodigy Li to maintain amateur status - USGA
AFP

Los Angeles (AFP) – Teenage golfer Lucy Li will retain her amateur status despite participating in an Apple Watch advertisement campaign, the US Golf Association ruled Thursday.

The USGA found that the 16-year-old American did indeed breach golf’s rules on amateur status, but opted to issue a one-time warning.

“She will retain her amateur status,” the USGA said in a statement.

Li, currently the world’s eighth-ranked amateur woman, is the youngest player to ever qualify for the US Women’s Open.

She is among 72 players in the field for the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur, a 54-hole tournament whose final round will be played at Augusta National on the Saturday before Masters week.

In the Apple Watch ad, Li is seen wearing the watch while practicing and hanging out with friends. 

Golf’s rules prohibit amateurs from using their golf skill or reputation to promote or advertise products, even if no compensation is received.

In opting to warn Li rather than strip her of her amateur status, the USGA said it took several factors into account, including the fact that she is a minor, she received no compensation, that it was her first breach of the rules.

In addition, the USGA said, Li “affirmed to the USGA that at the time she agreed to participate in the advertisement she did not know she was breaching the Rules of Amateur Status, and at no time did she intend to forfeit her Amateur Status”.

“This ruling is consistent with the Committee’s general practice of issuing a warning to amateurs who unknowingly breach Rule 6-2 for the first time and take appropriate remedial measures,” the USGA said.

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