Come To Think Of It...What We've Learned About Integrity From J.P. Hayes

"Honesty is such a lonely word. Everyone is so untrue."                                              - Billy Joel

In this sports world we live in, which emulates society as a whole, we read story after story about cheating, scandals, and sports figures who don't seem to give a damn about personal integrity and honesty.

That's why this story is so refreshing. In case you haven't heard, professional golfer J.P. Hayes willingly disqualified himself for using a nonstandard golf ball during a golf tournament in Texas last weekend. The ramifications of his honesty will hurt his ability to make money. Yet he has no second thoughts about it. 

You see, Hayes twice admitted to making mistakes that likely would never have been caught by anyone if he had merely kept the mistakes to himself. But that's not how Hayes works. And, he claims, most golfers would have done the same thing.

Golf is a sport that is governed by rules but policed mainly by personal integrity. It is, in part, based upon the belief that the "golf gods", as Hayes refers to them, rewards those who follow the rules.

During the PGA Tour qualifying tournament, Hayes initially admitted to using a ball that was different than the one he started the round with. The rules require a golfer to replace a lost ball with one that is the same type. For example, if you started the round shooting a Titleist Pro V1 ball, you'd better make sure that you replace it with another Titleist Pro V1.

Well, not only did Hayes admit to the mistake of using a different ball type, but it turns out that the one he used was not approved for professional tournament use, as it was a prototype ball given to him by a corporate sponsor. 

His admissions, resulting in him having failed to reach the final stage of Q-school, means he won't be a fully exempt member for the 2009 season. But don't feel so sorry for him.

It's likely that this public show of honesty will have advertisers lining up to sign Hayes. Plus, as a multiple champion, he won't be limited in the number of sponsor's exemptions he can receive throughout the year. 

Still, it's just so damn unusual for followers of sports such as baseball, football and basketball to see someone be so honest about something that actually has consequences. But in the game of golf, it definitely has its precedents.

As Bobby Jones said after receiving commendation for issuing himself a 2-stroke penalty during a playoff in the 1925 U.S. Open, "You may as well praise a man for not robbing a bank."

Golf is a sport that requires players to impose their own penalties, to play with integrity regardless of the personal cost or how dire the situation might be. That Hayes accepts this responsibility and lives by it shows us that integrity does live on in sports and offers a great lesson for children (and adults) everywhere.

So go home tonight and tell your sons and daughters about this. They need to know.

For it lies in stark contrast to the steroids using athletes, the point shaving basketball players and the cheating referees they hear about all the time on ESPN and other media outlets.

This is an aspect of sportsmanship that is sorely missing in sports these days. Honesty is indeed the best path. Even if it is at times a lonely one.