re: So did the USGA basically say their Open Champ is a liar??

DJ brought the rules official in at the time it happened. After discussing it the official ruled no penalty. That should have been the end of it. To tell him on the 12th tee you may or may not get a penalty had to frick his head up; he did hit some poor shots the next few holes before regrouping. If the penalty isn't assessed at the time, it should be over and done. USGA shite the bed big time and lost a lot of credibility. I doubt they call the penalty if he ended up leading by 1 shot.