19th Hole
‘They should be ashamed’ – LIV pro rips Augusta National for handling of ex-champ’s retirement moment

Take away the hotbed of the top of the leaderboard and the one thing golf does well is to give its former champions a great send-off.
Sadly, that wasn’t true for the 1998 Masters champion, Sandy Lyle, a victim of strange circumstance when Augusta National suspended play for a second time on Saturday.
Whilst weather forecasts predicted the storms, nobody could have predicted the incredible scenes of trees falling near the 17th green, let alone Lyle, who had to walk off the course with just two putts remaining of his 42-event Masters career.
For the final time in competition, Sandy Lyle, the 1988 Masters champion, finishes his round on No. 18. #themasters pic.twitter.com/Fnxg543DTv
— The Masters (@TheMasters) April 7, 2023
When play resumed on Sunday, Augusta held back many of the patrons for a short while, meaning Lyle finished his tournament in front of approximately 50 people, including family and friends.
Lyle explained, “I needed about another 30 seconds probably [on Saturday] and I would have had the chance to hit the putt. We tried to talk to the official that, ‘you know, please, let us finish’. But, no, they stuck to the rules, and rules are rules and we had to abide by that.”
His playing partner, Jason Kokrak, was not happy.
“To not have the patrons let in at 8 o’clock to be around that green is damn near unforgivable,” he told reporters in Augusta. “I think it’s the most ridiculous thing.”
Kokrak added,
“And I think it’s absolutely chicken shit that they wouldn’t grant a special exemption because they weren’t going to blow the horn except — I mean, I understand that there was a freak accident — trees going down.”
The three-time PGA Tour winner, now on the LIV tour, continued, “To not have a temporary exemption for something like that — I get that the lightning was in the area, but they weren’t going to blow the horn for a few more minutes.”
“So I think it’s something that will be lost. I enjoyed my time with Sandy the last couple of days, and I think he should have been able to finish. Especially with the patrons around here.”
“That’s what makes this place so great is the golf IQ of the patrons out here, or the fans that come out to Augusta. Because they knew what was going on and I think they wanted to see him make his last putt.”
“So I think Augusta National and the rules committee should be ashamed of themselves. And I’m really disappointed for him and his family for him not to be able to have that moment.”
In the end, Lyle two-putted with a replica of the putter he used during his one-shot victory over Mark Calcavecchia, complimenting Augusta and his playing partner in the process.
Commenting on the walk up 18 for the final time before the suspension, the 65-year-old said, “They [patrons] have been very supportive and more noticeable probably yesterday. They all stood up coming up the 18th and Jason Kokrak stood by the green and clapped for me all the way from there.”
“So they’re nice memories and I’m going away with, going home with a good feeling,.” he concluded.
More from the 19th Hole
- Viktor Hovland appeared to send a message to ‘brutally slow’ Patrick Cantlay during Masters final round
- ‘They should be ashamed’ – LIV pro rips Augusta National for handling of ex-champ’s retirement moment
- Jason Day reveals the shocking extent of Tiger’s injury at 2022 PGA Championship
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19th Hole
‘It was devastating’ – Keegan Bradley reveals the call he got that made him believe he was on Ryder Cup team

This week, Keegan Bradley was a guest on the Foreplay Podcast. The 37-year-old was one of the players who seemingly narrowly missed a spot on the Ryder Cup team, and shared a heart wrenching story of how it all went down.
Apparently, Zach Johnson texted all of the players in consideration for a Captain’s pick that they’d be getting a call the following day about whether or not they’ve made the team.
When the next day arrived, Keegan got a call from Netflix, who said “Keegan, we got a camera crew five minutes from your house.”
At that moment, Bradley let himself believe that meant he was going to be heading to Rome for the Ryder Cup.
“Why would they be sending a camera crew if I’m not to get picked? For the first time, I let my brain think I did it.”
He then said he knew immediately by the tone of Zach’s voice that he wasn’t going to be picked.
“It was devastating.”
When Netflix called, Keegan allowed himself to believe he was getting a Ryder Cup pick. And then, heartbreak.
Awesome show today. pic.twitter.com/SYW8c0X6cV
— Dan Rapaport (@Daniel_Rapaport) September 21, 2023
You can catch the full episode here.
More from the 19th Hole
- Korn Ferry Tour pro disqualified while warming up on the practice range
- ‘I know what people want to see’ – Ex-Golf Channel’s Holly Sonders on her new topless sports league
- ‘Is this serious?’ – Jon Rahm hilariously reacts to knee-lock golf swing from Barstool Sports’ Big Cat
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19th Hole
Brooks Koepka explains why he understood the case for and against picking Dustin Johnson for the Ryder Cup

Brooks Koepka is the lone LIV golfer in next week’s Ryder Cup. This will be the 33-year-old’s fourth Ryder Cup, and second in Europe. In his three prior Ryder Cups, Koepka is 6-5-1 overall, including 2-0-1 in singles matches.
Koepka was extremely close to being an automatic qualifier but slipped out of the final spot during the FedEx Cup playoffs.
The five-time major champion spoke about his Ryder Cup preparation prior to this week’s LIV Chicago event, in which he will be taking a flight to Rome directly after.
“My whole mindset has been to practice for (the Ryder Cup) the last few weeks. I mean, look, I think it’s one of the top six, seven biggest sporting events you can have. It’s a little bit more eyeballs, a little bit more pressure.”
When asked if he “plays for legacy” now after all he’s accomplished, Koepka said “I think everybody remembers their record”.
“I think everybody remembers their record, or that’s kind of what you’re known by, wins, losses. Poulter has pretty much made a career on that. Yeah, I think you can.”
While speaking with Sports Illustrated this week, Brooks was asked about the fact that Dustin Johnson, who went 5-0 at Whistling Straits in 2021, was not chosen as a captains pick this time around.
“I get the case for DJ. He played great the last time, played great last year. Hasn’t really played that great this year … or hasn’t played to DJ’s standard. That’s a better way to put that. And he didn’t play well in the majors. So I can see why he didn’t get a pick. But if they had picked him, it’s DJ and I could see that one as well.”
Although there will be no other LIV players in Rome, Koepka said he’s not worried about who he plays with and can “play with anybody”.
“I can play with anybody, and I will play with anybody.”
It will be interesting to see who Koepka is paired with next week at Marco Simone.
More from the 19th Hole
- Korn Ferry Tour pro disqualified while warming up on the practice range
- ‘I know what people want to see’ – Ex-Golf Channel’s Holly Sonders on her new topless sports league
- ‘Is this serious?’ – Jon Rahm hilariously reacts to knee-lock golf swing from Barstool Sports’ Big Cat
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19th Hole
Free agent Matt Fitzpatrick explains why he can’t play golf clubs made by these two manufacturers

The 2022 U.S. Open Champion, Matt Fitzpatrick, is currently an equipment free agent. He recently sat down with GolfMagic to discuss why he isn’t tied down with a manufacturer and what his outlook is going forward.
“I struggle with TaylorMade and Callaway clubs because of the way their woods and hybrids are designed. The soles aren’t very good for me so my interaction with the turf is terrible with those. Until that changes, I’d never be able to get on with them. PING and Titleist have always been a little bit better for me.”
With TaylorMade and Callaway off the table, Fitzpatrick is currently using Titleist TSi3 and is also experimenting with a Titleist TSR3.
According to the photos captured by GolfMagic, Fitz is still using his Bettinardi BB1 Fitz, but also has a different Bettinardi prototype he’s experimenting with in Rome.
With tight fairways at Marco Simone, the Englishman will be hoping that whichever driver he chooses keeps him in the fairway at next week’s Ryder Cup.
More from the 19th Hole
- Korn Ferry Tour pro disqualified while warming up on the practice range
- ‘I know what people want to see’ – Ex-Golf Channel’s Holly Sonders on her new topless sports league
- ‘Is this serious?’ – Jon Rahm hilariously reacts to knee-lock golf swing from Barstool Sports’ Big Cat
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Livininparadise
Apr 14, 2023 at 2:00 pm
Why did it have to be listed as a LIV pro? What did that have to do with the situation? Golfwrx is just a shill for the pgat
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John Barleycorn
Apr 10, 2023 at 10:55 am
That’s probably Coatracks last invite. Plummeting in world rankings and issuing a bikini wax style comment ala Big Mouth McCord. Just be thankful to be there and shut up.
Pingback: Viktor Hovland appeared to send a message to ‘brutally slow’ Patrick Cantlay during Masters final round – GolfWRX