PGA Tour tries reining in the fun at Phoenix Open 16th hole

What a buzzkill.

The PGA Tour has decided things have gotten a little out of control at the par-3 16th hole at TPC Scottsdale, host to the Waste Management Phoenix Open. And since regulating the behavior of some 20,000 daily spectators at the short hole is pretty much impossible, tour officials are imposing restrictions on players and their caddies.

Golfweek writer Alex Miceli shared a locker-room posting on Twitter which says, “At this year’s Waste Management Phoenix Open, for fan safety reasons, players and caddies are prohibited from throwing, kicking or otherwise propelling items into the crowd on the 16th hole.”

So that means no more throwing (Phil Mickelson) or punting (Padraig Harrington) footballs into the stands. No T-shirt cannons. Definitely no launching of alcohol.

The move comes on the heels of tour officials banning caddies from taking part in the traditional races to the green after their players tee off on the rowdy hole. It would seem the tour is trying to pull back some of the suppoed debauchery at a hole whose legend his built on it. Tiger Woods’ presence at the Super Bowl weekend tournament for the first time since 2001 probably played into this, too.

With a lot of adult beverages flowing dawn-to-dusk at the 16th, there’s always the chance a fan could unexpectedly get hit with something a player is tossing into the stands. After some oral or plastic surgery, a struck fan could sue the tour and the event.

On the plus side, the rule said nothing about behavior on any other hole.

Ryan Ballengee is a Yahoo Sports contributor. Find him on Facebook and Twitter.

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