By Dave Tindall

When Padraig Harrington was disqualified for a scorecard error at the Belfry three years ago, I can vividly recall my anger.

I had backed the Dubliner at 33/1 and was furious that he should be booted out for a harmless technicality when he was five shots clear with a round to play.

I wondered if I was talking through my pocket on that occasion but now I know I wasn't.

The same feelings about how stupid golf rules can be came flooding back today when Mark Roe was disqualified for signing a wrong scorecard – a tragedy given that the Sheffield veteran would have started the final day just two shots off the lead.

Jesper Parnevik, whose card Roe should have been signing rather than his own, was also thrown out although he had finished well out of contention after an 81.

Parnevik was so gutted for Roe that he could hardly speak afterwards. But when he did he summed it up perfectly.

“It's stupid,” said the Swede. “It's the dumbest thing. I don't know even why we bother having scorecards. We have a scorer with us. It's just one of those things we have to look into. It's not even part of the game.”

Parnevik is exactly right. How can something that's played right in front of numerous pairs of eyes and recorded on TV only become official if the right name or right signature is put on the card.

What if the same was true in football. Imagine they have a rule by which the result must be correctly recorded. We witness Manchester United beat Real Madrid 2-0 but because Alex Ferguson didn't sign a scoresheet at the end of the match the result is declared void.

And don't give me the “rules are rules” argument. If they're stupid rules, made before scorers and TV was invented, then they must be amended and common sense applied.

Golf equipment and courses change and evolve all the time. So why can't the rules?

In a way I wish it had happened to Tiger. Then perhaps something would be done about it.