Brazil's Victoria Lovelady became the first player in the Olympic Games to be penalised for slow play during Thursday's second round in Rio.
Lovelady was given a one-shot penalty on the 15th hole at Reserva de Marapendi, turning what should have been a par into a bogey.
The 29-year-old had already been warned for taking too long over a shot on the 10th and her second "bad time" on the 15th therefore incurred the penalty.
"I tried to refute it, tried to appeal, but I didn't have enough argument to convince them," Lovelady said after a second round of 75 left her 12 over par and 56th in the 60-strong field. "There was a lot of interruption noise from the crowds, which is normal. I had to back off a lot of shots."
Lovelady tried to argue her case with R&A rules official Grant Moir, but her protests fell on deaf ears.
"I told him, but he didn't see it as valid," she added. "They have to do their job. It's the Olympics, they have to be very strict. I respect their choice. What can I do?
"I got a warning on 10 and that affected me way more. For sure it affected my bogey. I told them about crowd noise. I thought it was common sense."
The pace of play on Thursday was far better than during Wednesday's opening round, when the final group of Lydia Ko, Anna Nordqvist and Charley Hull took five hours and 35 minutes to complete 18 holes.
Source: PA
