While simply missing the fairway off the tee might not seem like a punishable offense for McIlroy’s 3-wood, the broadcast team provided some context. McIlroy had just three putts for bogey from 45 feet on the previous hole, the par-3 16th — his second bogey of the day. And on the 17th, a reachable par-5, hitting a drive into the rough isn’t ideal if a player wants to have a good shot at birdie or better.

Like Scheffler, who had a loud outburst Friday after a water ball and a misjudged wedge from the drop zone, there was more than one factor at play when McIlroy threw his club into the water.

Fortunately for McIlroy, the club did not completely submerge and was retrieved from the water’s edge. After picking up his tee, McIlroy calmly picked up the club and handed it to his caddie. He also managed to par the hole.

At three under par, McIlroy currently sits 15th at the BMW Championship half. If his position does not improve over the next two rounds, he is expected to drop from fifth to eighth in the FedEx Cup points standings heading into next week’s Tour Championship at East Lake.

Golf.com Editor

As a four-year member of Columbia’s inaugural class of female varsity golfers, Jessica can out-bird anyone on the masthead. She can out-bird anyone in the office, too, where she’s primarily responsible for producing both print and online content and overseeing major special projects, such as GOLF’s inaugural Style Issue, which debuted in February 2018. Her original interview series, “A Round With,” debuted in November 2015 and has appeared in both the magazine and in video form on GOLF.com.