Professional Golfer Somehow Whiffs On Tap-In Putt During Senior Open Championship

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While it may not seem like it, professional golfers do occasionally miss incredibly short putts. Even World No. 1 Scottie Scheffler has missed three putts inside of 3-feet this year on the PGA Tour. Scheffler actually made contact on those three missed shorties, however, which can not be said for the tap-in putt that Paul Broadhurst missed during the opening round of the Senior Open Championship.

Broadhurst, who won the 2016 Senior Open, whiffed on a putt from well inside a foot.

The all-time embarrassing moment came on the seventh green at Carnoustie after Broadhurst left his par attempt a couple of inches away from the cup. Seeing as how the 58-year-old has made thousands upon thousands of tap-in putts in his career, he casually walked up to the ball, took his putter back with one hand, and proceeded to miss the ball completely.

And yes, for all the non-golfers out there, a whiff counts as a stroke. Instead of walking away with a bogey on the hole, Broadhurst carded a double bogey.

Crazy things happen on the golf course, and we've all either whiffed on a full shot or certainly witnessed someone else completely miss the golf ball, but the complete whiff on a tap-in putt in a senior major championship is about as rough as it gets.

Despite the embarrassing double bogey on the seventh hole, Broadhurst was able to shoot 3-under on Thursday. However, if he had made the tap in, he would be tied for the lead alongside Stephen Ames heading into Friday's second round.

If Broadhurst remains in contention come Sunday, and somehow misses out on winning the tournament by a single shot, we could be witness to one of the most-costly missed putts in the game's history.

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Mark covers all sports at OutKick while keeping a close eye on the world of professional golf. He graduated from the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga before earning his master's degree in journalism from the University of Tennessee. He somehow survived living in Knoxville despite ‘Rocky Top’ being his least favorite song ever written. Before joining OutKick, he wrote for various outlets including SB Nation, The Spun, and BroBible. Mark was also a writer for the Chicago Cubs Double-A affiliate in 2016 when the team won the World Series. He's still waiting for his championship ring to arrive. Follow him on Twitter @itismarkharris.