Every golfer has been in the bunker. All it takes is one bad swing to end up in the beach, but the sand most golfers face is an obvious hazard.

For Dustin Johnson, that wasn't the case on Sunday in the PGA Championship at Whistling Straits. On his second shot of the 500-yard par 4 18th hole, Johnson found his ball sitting in a small chunk of sand - not the normal sarlac pit surrounding greens and fairways. Even though golfers were warned that the course contained around 1,200 bunkers scattered inside and outside the ropes, Johnson didn't think his ball was in a bunker.

Little did he know, bunkers at Whistling Straits are of the one size fits all variety. He hit out of the sand and ended up bogeying the hole to finish at -11 and believing he was about the start a three hole playoff with Martin Kaymar and Bubba Watson.

A rules official, and a lack of being hooked on phonics prevented that, though. Since Johnson grounded his club in the ashtray-esque sand trap, he was given a two stroke penalty and dropped from the playoff.

The rules were clear, even if the situation was not: "All areas of the course that were designed and built as sand bunkers will be played as bunkers (hazards), whether or not they have been raked. This will mean that many bunkers positioned outside of the ropes, as well as some areas of bunkers inside the ropes, close to the rope line, will likely include numerous footprints, heel prints and tire tracks during the play of the Championship. Such irregularities of surface are a part of the game and no free relief will be available from these conditions."

There were no rakes, just footprints, tire tracks and fans surrounding Johnson. It didn't matter if Johnson grounded by accident or with full knowledge it was penalty; he did it.

Critics are screaming that it's an injustice - but if you speed on the highway it's still illegal even if no one sees it. That's why this entire situation is so unique to the sport of golf... players call penalties on themselves and if they don't, there's usually a rules official there to write the ticket.

Don't call it unfair or criticize a rule that was clearly broken. All Johnson had to do was pay attention to the warnings plastered all over Whistling Straits about the bunkers and his caddie should have done the same. The clear thing is that Johnson is in the beginning stages of what looks to be a stellar career. His major will come some day, just not in 2010.

It's been a theme all year: pay attention to the good happening on the course, because there's been a lot of it. Kaymar's victory in the playoff over Watson, though unspectacular, topped off the final major of 2010 in a way few seem to appreciate because of this controversy. The tournament in general can stand alone as an entertaining and great TV experience for golf fans, but only if they let it - and too many did not.