Roe calls on authorities to change rules

Mark Roe has called on golf's governing bodies to change the "blatantly unfair" rules which saw him robbed of the chance for …

Mark Roe has called on golf's governing bodies to change the "blatantly unfair" rules which saw him robbed of the chance for Open glory.

Roe was joint fourth at Sandwich after a brilliant third-round 67 but he was disqualified along with playing partner Jesper Parnevik after the pair accidentally signed each other's cards.

The Sheffield-based player admitted news of his penalty left him "dumbfounded and absolutely shellshocked" and called for rule changes, claiming a "clerical error" should not have denied him the chance to compete in today's final round.

Roe told Talksport radio: "I must admit I didn't get a lot of sleep last night to be honest. I got a bottle of champagne and drank myself to sleep.

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"I feel numb this morning. It could have been one of the great days of my life and I've lost that opportunity.

"I went through the events in my mind when I was driving home and the only thing I remember was checking my total four times and then handing it to the gentleman.

"I remember him saying clearly `congratulations Mr Roe, great score'. I do remember very clearly, `nice score, two signatures, well played'.

"I think maybe it's time for a change of certain rules. There are rules that rightly penalise and rules that we all know are just blatantly unfair.

"I don't feel I made a mistake yesterday - it was a clerical error, it was nothing to do with the game of golf, it was a piece of paper. My score was 67.

"I was dumbfounded and absolutely shellshocked when I was called back in. I thought maybe I'd made a mistake on Jesper's card. I can't tell you the shock."