Dustin Johnson

Memorable Sports Blunders

Dustin Johnson will always be remembered for something he’ll likely want to forget. With a one-stroke lead heading into the final hole at the 92nd PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, Johnson grounded his club in an odd-shaped bunker, a trap he and his caddie failed to recognize as so. The quick lapse in judgment resulted in a two stroke penalty and bumped the 26-year-old from a tie for first and out of a three-way playoff with Martin Kaymer and Bubba Watson. Johnson finished tied for fifth, falling well short of a cool $1.3 million pay day. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)

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Dustin Johnson Dustin Johnson will always be remembered for something he’ll likely want to forget. With a one-stroke lead heading into the final hole at the 92nd PGA Championship at Whistling Straits, Johnson grounded his club in an odd-shaped bunker, a trap he and his caddie failed to recognize as so. The quick lapse in judgment resulted in a two stroke penalty and bumped the 26-year-old from a tie for first and out of a three-way playoff with Martin Kaymer and Bubba Watson. Johnson finished tied for fifth, falling well short of a cool $1.3 million pay day. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Leon Lett Former Cowboys defensive great Leon Lett is credited with one of the more embarrassing blunders in NFL history. Lett’s infamous fumble occurred at Super Bowl XXVII when he recovered a fumble on the Buffalo Bills 45-yard line and started to run it back for a score. Heading in for six, a showboating Lett extended his hands and the ball outward around the 10-yard line, but he didn’t see Bills receiver Don Beebe running him down. Beebe caught Lett and stripped the ball and it skidded through the endzone resulting in a touchback. (AP Photo/Douglas C. Pizac)
Fred Brown After Michael Jordan's 17-foot jumper gave North Carolina a 63-62 lead over Georgetown, Brown brought the ball up to the top of the circle and after faking a pass, inexplicably passed the ball to North Carolina's James Worthy to clinch the 1982 NCAA Championship title for the Tar Heels. (AP Photo/Pete Leabo)
Dan O'Brien Decathletes Dan O’Brien and Dave Johnson were expected to go 1-2 for the U.S. in the 1992 Olympic Games. During the Olympic Trials, O’Brien had to clear any height in the pole vault to qualify for the U.S. team. Instead of choosing the minimum qualifying height, O’Brien opted to vault 15-9. He failed to clear the height in all three attempts and didn’t qualify for the Games. (AP Photo/Doug Mills)
Jim Joyce Umpire Jim Joyce's blown call may go down as one of the most blatant misfires in baseball history. Joyce stripped Tigers pitcher Armando Galarraga of a perfect game when he called rookie Jason Donald safe at first in what would have been the 27th out. Replay showed Donald was clearly out. Joyce later apologized to Galarraga and admitted he missed the call, but the damage was done. Galarraga would have been only the 19th pitcher to toss a perfect game in baseball’s modern era. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya)
Koman Coulibaly The 2010 World Cup was full of controversial calls on the part of several officials. The more infamous one came at the hands of Malian referee Koman Coulibaly. Coulibaly’s offside call against Team USA in its opener vs. Slovenia was one of the more talked about calls of the Cup as it prevented Maurice Edu’s game-winning goal from counting and nearly cost the U.S. a spot in the round of 16. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Michelle Wie At the 2008 State Farm Classic, Wie was in second place (17 under par) after three rounds but was disqualified when she forgot to sign her second-round scorecard. The mistake It cost her a chance for the $255,000 first-place money and an automatic spot on the LPGA Tour in 2009. She ended up going to Q-School to earn her Tour card with a seventh-place finish. (AP Photo/Tim Hales)
Sven Kramer Dutch speedskating sensation Sven Kramer was well on his way to winning the gold medal in the 10,000-meter final at the 2010 Olympic Games when his coach directed him to switch lanes. Kramer moved to the inside lane with eight laps to go and was disqualified for an improper lane change. The mistake cost him the gold and $500,000. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
Chris Webber In the 1993 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship, Michigan's “Fab Five” faced off against North Carolina. With 20 seconds to go and Michigan trailing by two points, Chris Webber grabbed the rebound off a missed free throw and attempted to call timeout. But the Wolverines were out of timeouts and a technical foul was called. Michigan lost possession handing the Tar Heels their fourth national title. (AP Photo/Susan Ragan)
Bill Buckner In 1986, the Boston Red Sox appeared poised to finally win their first World Series since 1918. In perhaps the most infamous sports gaffe of all time, Bill Buckner misplayed a ground ball in the tenth inning of Game 6. The Mets would go on to win Game 7 and leave Boston spurned. Buckner would wrap up his career in 1990. He returned to Fenway Park on opening day of 2008 to throw out the first pitch. (AP Photo/Rusty Kennedy)
Tom Osborne On January 2, 1984, Nebraska coach Tom Osborne rolled the dice and went of the win vs. Miami in the National Championship games. After a late touchdown pulled the Cornhuskers within one point, Osborne elected to go for a two point conversion. It was risky, especially considering Nebraska could have tied Miami and still won the National Championship. Nebraska quarterback Turner Gil's pass fell incomplete and the Huskers were defeated. (AP Photo/Nati Harnik)
Tony Romo In the first round of the 2007 NFL Playoffs, Tony Romo fumbled a hold for an all-but-sure field goal against Seattle. If good, the Cowboys would have been up by two points with a minute to play, but instead, Seattle held on to win 21-20. (AP Photo/L.M. Otero)
Steve Bartman Chicago Cubs fans were just a few outs away from getting back to the World Series in 2003 when Steve Bartman reached for a foul ball falling into the seats. Luis Castillo could have made a play on the ball for the second out in the 8th inning, but ultimately did not. The Cubs lost the lead and eventually the series the following night in Game 7. (AP Photo/Amy Sancetta)
Gus Frerotte During a 1997 game against the New York Giants, Gus Frerotte staged an embellished touchdown celebration and paid for it. After scrambling into the end zone from a yard out, Frerotte celebrated by spiking the ball and head-butting the padded end zone wall. Video replay showed a clear recoil from the impact. After trying to play in the last series of the first half, he sat on the bench for the rest of the game with a sprained neck. (AP Photo/Mark Wilson)
Natalie Gilbert Natalie Gilbert isn't an athlete, but her gaffe was just as embarrassing as many of the athletes on this list. During a 2003 game between the Trail Blazers and Mavericks, the Oregon native forgot the words to the National Anthem. Trail Blazers' head coach Maurice Cheeks rushed to her aid and helped her finish the song along with the entire crowd. (AP Photo/H. Rumph Jr.)
Joe Niekro In 1987 Niekro was suspended for 10 games when umpire Steve Palermo discovered he had a nail file in his pocket. Video showed Niekro reaching into his pockets, pulling out his hands, and throwing them in the air while the nail file fluttered to the ground. Niekro said he was filing his nails in the dugout, but American League president Dr. Bobby Brown didn't believe him, and ordered the suspension. (AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi)
Roberto De Vince... One of the biggest blunders in Masters history came during a playoff in the 1968 tournament when Roberto De Vincenzo incorrectly penciled in his birdie on the par-4 17th as a "4" instead of a "3." The mistake cost him the win as he finished second behind Bob Goalby. (AP Photo/Eddie Kolenovsky)