Jordan Spieth has had his share of unusual moments on the PGA Tour, despite his incredible career that includes 13 wins and three major titles in just over a decade as a pro. The 32-year-old is known not only for his talent but also for the dramatic rule situations he often finds himself in.
Spieth’s actions have even prompted rule changes, such as the 2024 update that gave players a 15-minute window to fix scorecard errors—introduced after he was disqualified at Riviera for rushing to the bathroom before double-checking his card. He also famously incurred a penalty at the Hero World Challenge in 2023 when he and Henrik Stenson accidentally teed off from the wrong markers.
But one of his strangest rule encounters happened even earlier in 2015, long before his first major win.
Spieth’s strange request at the 2015 WGC–Cadillac Championship
During the event at Trump National Doral, Spieth approached veteran rules official Andy McFee with a question so unusual that it took officials, commentators, and even the USGA to figure out the answer.
Spieth explained after his round that the bottom of his putter became overly shiny on the ultra-fast greens, making it hard for him to set the putter down properly. He had noticed the same issue in Abu Dhabi and had occasionally used saliva in practice to reduce the slipperiness.
So on the third green, he asked McFee if he was allowed to lick his finger and apply saliva to the bottom of his putter before putting. No one—from his coach to fellow pros—had been able to tell him whether it was legal.
Why the answer took so long
McFee admitted he had no idea. He confirmed Spieth could wipe the putter with a towel, but saliva was a different matter. After radioing multiple officials and escalating the question to the USGA, Spieth spent several holes waiting for a verdict.
He was eventually told that using saliva in that way would count as applying an “outside influence” to gain an advantage, making it illegal under the rules. Spieth never actually used the trick during play, but he wanted clarity after experimenting on practice greens.
The final ruling
In short: even on extremely slick greens, players are not allowed to apply saliva to the bottom of their putter to help it grip better. Cleaning a club with spit is fine, but using it to improve performance is not.
