Golf: Five Biggest Blunders Of The Last 10 Years

Phil Mickelson at Winged Foot
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All right, its time to compile a list of the 5 biggest golf blunders of the last 10 years.

Whether you witnessed them live, watched them on TV or simply read about them in the newspaper the next day, you cannot help but feel a little sorry for the five who made the list.

But as Graeme McDowell said, "Golf is a cruel game."

5. Mark Roe, 2003 British Open

Mark Roe
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It was any golfer's dream. Coming off of a third-round 67 at Royal St. George's, Roe thought he was just three off the lead.

Unfortunately, Roe and playing partner Jesper Parnevik forgot to exchange scorecards before teeing off. As a result, they both signed for the wrong score which lead to their disqualification from the tournament.

Roe never contended at another major. 

4. Ian Woosnam, 2001 British Open

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Fourteen. As in a the number of clubs a golfer has in his bag during a round. For Woosnam and his caddie, however, they never thought to count. Well, they should have.

Woosey found himself atop the leader board at Royal Lytham & St. Anne's. That was until his caddy turned to him and said, "We're going to be ballistic...there are two drivers in your bag."

That brought his club count to 15. A two stroke penalty for every hole played over the 14-club limit.

Uh-oh! Well, Woosey responded by bogeying the next two holes and never sniffed the leader board again. 

3. Colin Montgomerie, 2006 U.S. Open

Colin Montgomerie
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Everyone remembers the 2006 U.S. Open for a different blunder which we will get to shortly. Most forget about Monty's.

This is a man who has had countless opportunities to win a major, yet always finds a way to fall short.

Coming off of a birdie at the 17th hole at Winged Foot, Monty found himself in the middle of the 18th fairway, tied for the lead. He sat 172 yards from the pin, a mere short iron away.

This is a man who is known for his iron play. So, what happens...he finds the deep rough to the right of the green. From there, Monty can do no better than a double bogey and once again gives away a major title.

2. Phil Mickelson, 2006 U.S. Open

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It looked like Phil was finally ready to capture that elusive U.S. Open he wanted so badly. That was until he reached the tee of the 18th hole at Winged Foot.

He pulled drive and tried to hit what he described as his "bread-and-butter shot." Well, that shot found a hospitality tent. From that position it took five more strokes to put the ball in the hole.

He finished in a tie for second but provided a memorable quote when he declared, "I am such an idiot."

1. Dustin Johnson, 2010 PGA Championship

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After imploding in the final round of the 2010 U.S. Open at Pebble Beach, it appeared the year could not get worse for Dustin Johnson.

That was until he reached the 18th hole at the 2010 PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. His drive found a patch of ground that Johnson thought was "a piece of dirt where the crowd had trampled [everything] down."

Unfortunately for Johnson, the rules committee had posted a set of rules stating that any sand on the course was to be played as a bunker. When Johnson grounded his club in the suspect piece of dirt, he had violated the rules that state you cannot ground your club in a bunker.

The blunder turned a first-place tie and a place in a playoff into a fifth-place finish.