PGA Tour professional Sam Ryder withdrew from a Monday qualifier for the 2026 Valspar Championship after realizing he had broken a new rule on preferred lies. Ryder described the infraction as unintentional and explained it gained him no advantage. He later entered the main event and finished tied for 64th.
Sam Ryder, a 36-year-old PGA Tour veteran with earnings exceeding $10.6 million across 234 starts, entered the Monday qualifier at Brooksville ahead of the Valspar Championship at Innisbrook Resort. Lacking full status after a weak FedEx Cup finish last year, he had played four events earlier in 2026 but needed to qualify for this one. Ryder reached three under through nine holes under lift, clean and place conditions but withdrew mid-round upon noticing his error. Speaking on the 'Any Given Monday' podcast with Ryan French, Ryder said, 'I withdrew because I unintentionally cheated, actually.' The infraction involved the PGA Tour's new 2026 rule limiting drops to the length of a scorecard—about 11 inches—instead of a full club length, one of six rule changes this season. 'I had not been doing the scorecard length,' Ryder admitted. 'It didn’t really gain anything for me, but I definitely knew there were a couple situations where… so I withdrew.' Despite the setback, Ryder gained entry to the Valspar when Akshay Bhatia pulled out on Wednesday. He made the cut and tied for 64th place on Sunday, collecting $19,474. Ryder holds a Korn Ferry Tour victory but no PGA Tour wins.
