19th Hole

Jeff Golden issues statement on Florida Mid-Am incident

Published

8 years ago

May 25, 2018

Jeff Golden is sharing more details about the events of May 16 at the Florida Mid-Amateur Championship.

If you recall, police were summoned to Coral Creek Club during a rain delay in the Golden-Marc Dull final. Golden alleged Dull’s caddie, Brandon Hibbs, punched him in the face during a parking lot altercation. Dull and Hibbs both deny the incident occurred.

Rather than paraphrase or pull quotes, it seems appropriate to post the majority of Golden’s statement as is, since it’s his attempt to speak for himself and set the record straight.

“When my name was announced on the first tee, my opponent’s caddie immediately asked an off color question. I laughed off the timing of that question, along with many other examples of bad etiquette to come. Alcohol appeared to be influencing his behavior. I’ve never seen an opposing caddie engage in so much conversation with a competitor. On the eighth hole I had become extremely frustrated because I was forced to back off my shot two different times when my opponent and caddie were talking and moving. I expressed my disappointment with their etiquette to the match referee following our group.”

“The ruling that came from the caddie’s comments on the ninth hole started because of a simple question that I posed: “Was that advice?” I thought this was the only way to slow down the caddie, clean up the etiquette and play a gentlemanly match. I felt justified in my decision, especially since my opponent then asked his caddie, “Why did you say that?” The caddie recused himself from the match, but he didn’t leave the property.”

“…I didn’t even get my bag out of my car when the caddie reappeared and said he’d like to apologize. I most likely had a smile on my face, because I was ready to put the past behind us, and he punched me in the face. I was knocked to the ground, and by the time I looked up, he was walking away, to my surprise, toward the clubhouse. The pro shop is a separate building, so that’s where I immediately went for help. The inside of my mouth was bleeding and my face was throbbing. I realized my hand was also hurting –that’s what broke my fall instead of my head.

“The pro shop employee called the police and was extremely helpful, getting me ice and offering any help I needed. The police arrived, and the deputy concluded that there wasn’t enough evidence to justify pressing charges. I gave a recorded sworn statement to the deputy recapping the events.”

“The FSGA has one job, and that’s to follow the Rules of Golf. Unfortunately, there’s no rule for an inebriated “ex-caddie” punching a player in a match-play rain delay with no witnesses.”

“The FSGA gave me one option when the rain stopped. I had to play. My opponent had the option to concede the match and take responsibility for his caddie, but he told me he had nothing to do with what occurred.”

Golden further indicated that he conceded the match because of “physical and emotional distress, pulsing pain in my face, dizziness and cuts on my right hand.” He indicated he was surprised the FSGA didn’t suspend the match.

With respect to that point, it’s probably worth pointing out that FSGA executive director Jim Demick said that Golden “didn’t want to play anymore.”

“Regrettably, the golf course was very playable and Jeff understood that he needed to resume the match. I think he was just ready to go,” adding police “found absolutely no evidence of an assault.”

The FSGA hasn’t provided additional comment or modified that statement.

19th Hole

How much each player won at the 2026 Masters

Published

2 months ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Rory McIlroy made it two wins in as many years at Augusta National, seeing off the challengers on a dramatic Sunday to slip on the green jacket once again. The victory earned Rory a whopping payday of $4.5 million, with Scottie Scheffler his closest challenger earning $2.43 million for his sole runner-up finish.

With a total prize purse of $22.5 million up for grabs, here’s a look at how much each player won at the 2026 Masters tournament.

For players that did not make the cut, they still earned $25k for their efforts at the year’s opening major.

1: Rory McIlroy, $4.5 million
2: Scottie Scheffler, $2.43 million
T3: Tyrrell Hatton, $1.08 million
T3: Russell Henley, $1.08 million
T3: Justin Rose, $1.08 million
T3: Cameron Young, $1.08 million
T7: Collin Morikawa, $725,625
T7: Sam Burns, $725,625
T9: Xander Schauffele, $630,00
T9: Max Homa, $630,00
11: Jake Knapp, $562,500
T12: Jordan Spieth, $427,500
T12: Brooks Koepka, $427,500
T12: Hideki Matsuyama, $427,500
T12: Patrick Reed, $427,500
T12: Patrick Cantlay, $427,500
T12: Jason Day, $427,500
T18: Viktor Hovland, $315,000
T18: Maverick McNealy, $315,000
T18: Matt Fitzpatrick, $315,000
T21: Keegan Bradley, $252,000
T21: Ludvig Aberg, $252,000
T21: Wyndham Clark, $252,000
T24: Matt McCarty, $182,083
T24: Adam Scott, $182,083
T24: Sam Stevens, $182,083
T24: Chris Gotterup, $182,083
T24: Michael Brennan, $182,083
T24: Brian Campbell, $182,083
T30: Alex Noren, $146,250
T30: Harris English, $146,250
T30: Shane Lowry, $146,250
T33: Gary Woodland, $121,500
T33: Dustin Johnson, $121,500
T33: Brian Harman, $121,500
T33: Tommy Fleetwood, $121,500
T33: Ben Griffin, $121,500
T38: Jon Rahm, $105,750
T38: Ryan Gerard, $101,250
T38: Haotong Li, $96,750
T41: Justin Thomas, $92,250
T41: Sepp Straka, $87,750
T41: Jacob Bridgeman, $83,250
T41: Kristoffer Reitan, $78,750
T41: Nick Taylor, $74,250
46: Sungjae Im, $69,750
47: Si Woo Kim, $65,250
48: Aaron Rai, $61,650
T49: Corey Conners, $57,600
T49: Marco Penge, $57,600
51: Kurt Kitayama, $55,250
52: Sergio Garcia, $54,000
53: Rasmus Hojgaard, $52,650
54: Charl Schwartzel, $51,300

19th Hole

CBS’s Sunday Masters coverage slammed by golf fans

Published

2 months ago

Apr 13, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

While Sunday was a dramatic day at the Masters, many golf fans were left feeling frustrated by the CBS final round coverage.

There were plenty of moments that golf fans took to social media to air their frustrations on Sunday over, including a lack of shots being shown throughout the day, being behind the live action, confusion over the approach shots of the final group on 18, and providing an angle for the winning putt where the cup couldn’t be seen.

Here’s a look at some of the criticisms that were directed at the CBS coverage throughout the day on X:

This has been a brutal broadcast for CBS. When the folks from Augusta sit down with them this year, you can bet they’ll talk about this 15 seconds where we have no idea where Rory’s ball went, and Dottie moans. #TheMasters pic.twitter.com/ak3mkpIN7V

— Ryan (@PossiblyRy) April 12, 2026

It’s rare criticism coming in for CBS, who are usually heavily praised for their Masters coverage each year.

19th Hole

The surprise club Tommy Fleetwood says is key to his Masters chances

Published

2 months ago

Apr 7, 2026

Gianni Magliocco

Tommy Fleetwood goes in search for the first major victory of his career again this week, with the Englishman proving to be a popular pick at Augusta National.

Fleetwood’s best showing at Augusta came back in 2024 where he finished T3, and while speaking at his pre-tournament press conference, the 35-year-old emphasized the importance of his 9-wood in his pursuit of the green jacket.

Speaking on Tuesday to media, Fleetwood said:

“It’s a great 9-wood golf course. I think it’s always been — I can’t remember when I first put like a 9-wood in or a high lofted club, but it’s a perfect like 9-wood golf course. I’ve had that in the bag for a few years.”

The Englishman continued, revealing that his strategy for the week won’t just be to hit driver off the tee as much as possible:

“Yeah, it’s funny really because I know Augusta is probably associated with being fairly forgiving off the tee in a way, so you think you can whale around driver a little bit. But I don’t necessarily think that’s always the play for me. I think there’s holes that set up really well where I can draw it with the mini driver if I’m feeling less comfortable with the driver and things like that.”

That strategy he believes will make his TaylorMade Qi10 9-wood extra critical this week in Georgia:

“The biggest thing is the 9-wood for me. If I can put myself in position on the par-5s or the 4th long par-3, like it — for me, I can’t really hit that high 4-iron, so 9-wood helps me a lot.”