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Match fixing is when the outcome of a match in organized sports has been manipulated. The reason for fixing a match includes ensuring a certain team advances or gambling. Match fixing is seen as one of the biggest problems in organized sports and is considered as a major scandal. This article is a list of match fixing incidents and of matches that are widely suspected of having been fixed.
The illusion of, but not legally match fixing, occurred in December 1959 when Sam Snead had legitimately lost to Mason Rudolph on the NBC show World Championship Golf because of an error on Snead's part. At the 12th hole with the match tied, Snead discovered that he was carrying 15 clubs in his bag in violation of Rule 3 with the 14 club limit.
Under the Rules of Golf in effect at the time, the general penalty was assessed for each hole the 15th club was in the bag. As this was a match play event, the general penalty is a loss of hole; in stroke play, the penalty is two penalty strokes for each hole the extra club was in the bag. There was no limit to the number of general penalties that could be assessed. [142]
With the score even on the 12th hole, the match officially ended after Snead's eleven loss of hole penalties, with Rudolph winning 11 and 7. Instead of disclosing the violation, Snead continued to play, but purposefully missed putts to give Rudolph the victory. Snead said his decision to continue was because he knew the NBC show would be an hour short of the planned run time and he wanted to give the producers a usable broadcast that showed Rudolph the winner, although viewers would not be informed of the violation that legitimately ended the match at the 12th, creating the illusion that Rudolph won a fair match when in actuality, Rudolph had won upon Snead's discovery of his own infraction. [143]
This match was broadcast in April 1960, shortly after Congressional hearings into the quiz show scandals after it was discovered major big-money quiz shows were fixed, leading to the cancellation of such programs across all broadcast networks. Modern game shows state the disclaimer, "Portions of the Program not affecting the outcome have been edited and/or recreated" when edits are used for time constraints, or when incidents require parts of the program not affecting the outcome to be reshot. Snead began missing puts to stage the official outcome of the match, Rudolph winning, after the match had legally concluded' at the 12th hole.
This incident led to a revision of the Rules of Golf that went into effect in 1964 to correct the problem caused by this incident by limiting the number of general penalties assessed for having an additional club to two penalties in a round as a score adjustment. [144] The rule is listed as Rule 4.1.b in the current edition of the USGA Rules of Golf. [145] With the post-1964 rule, the score would be adjusted at the 12th hole from tied to Rudolph leading by two holes (2 up) after the maximum penalty of a two-hole adjustment was assessed. Snead would have to make up a two-hole deficit with seven holes remaining.
For legal reasons, this was not match fixing, since the outcome of the match was determined when Snead "recreated" under modern legal terminology the result following Rudolph's legitimate 11 and 7 win after 11 loss of hole penalties for the infraction to show the legitimate result, a Rudolph win.
The rule Snead violated has occurred at professional golf events, all in stroke play.
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