Golfweek

• Complete coverage | Twitter: @collegegolf | Facebook: Lance Ringler’s College Golf Page

COLUMBUS, Ind. – For a little while at least, Notre Dame’s Annie Brophy looked like a hero. The front-nine 30 that spectators saw on the scoreboard at the demanding Otter Creek Golf Course Sunday was downright otherworldly. Brophy was single-handedly keeping the Irish alive at the NCAA Central Regional. 

Alas, Brophy’s score was literally too good to be true. She lied.

When members of the NCAA rules committee heard about Brophy’s five birdies and an eagle (she threw in a bogey for good measure), they went out to the 11th hole to see for themselves. Notre Dame assistant coach Kyle Lynne Veltri told them that front-nine score couldn’t possibly be accurate.

“(Veltri) said ‘Her score probably isn’t even going to count,’ ” said Nancy Cross, chair of the NCAA Division I Women's Golf Committee.

Turns out Brophy had reported inaccurate numbers to Golfstat volunteers. On the back nine, Brophy decided to go in the opposite direction, telling Golfstat she’d gone quadruple-bogey/triple-bogey/bogey on Nos. 10-12 to move to 2 under for the day. 

When those scores showed up on live scoring, Kent State cheered as Notre Dame fell out of the running. They immediately went outside and took down their team flag to commemorate the occasion. Turns out they could’ve done that hours earlier. 

Cross then met with the rest of the committee to determine Brophy’s fate. They rode back out to the 14th hole, and told Brophy she’d been DQ’d for unsportsmanlike conduct.

“She thought she was being funny,” said Cross, who believes the Irish senior was unaware of the impact her dishonesty had on the rest of the field and left the course embarrassed.

Cross had held three teams at the course – Florida State, Oregon and Kent State – in case Notre Dame forced a playoff for the eighth spot. The Irish finished 17th, 30 shots back of the cutline.