19th Hole

‘This guy does not stop’ – Tour pros take aim at Patrick Reed over latest rules controversy

Published

1 year ago

Jan 30, 2023

The words Patrick Reed and controversy seem to go hand in hand these days, and it continued at the weekend.

During the third round of the delayed Dubai Desert Classic, Reed took a penalty drop after identifying his ball lodged in one of a group of trees. Trouble is, the ball is only identifiable by a specific arrow marking in what appears to be a palm full of golf balls. And, in this case, by binoculars.

Here are two VERY close looks (per the wizards at Getty) of the markings on Patrick Reed's golf ball that allowed him to identify it in the palm tree in Dubai.

Spot the black "arrow" that Reed talked about in his post-round presser and the red dot. Both images are from today. pic.twitter.com/40UhXOq0rX

— James Colgan (@jamescolgan26) January 29, 2023

If unable to identify his ball, Reed would have needed to go back to the 17th tee to re-load, more than likely causing to him to score double-bogey instead of just the one dropped shot.

The former Masters champion had already found himself embroiled in a debate surrounding his apparel daubed with ‘LIV Golf’, and in a spat with the world number one in Dubai.

Pre-event, video footage showed McIlroy apparently ignoring his greeting when on the practise ground, resulting in a bit of tee-throwing, leading social media to comment we have moved from ‘Tee Gate’ to ‘Tree Gate’ in the space of a few days.

In a statement issued by tournament officials, the DP World Tour confirmed that “two on course referees and several marshals” identified that Reed’s ball had been caught up in the tree.

As shown by the Golf Channel, this is the alleged offending tree, shown with a heap of golf-balls never to be seen again:

The full statement issued reads:

Despite being cleared of any wrongdoing, a couple of DP World Tour pros seemed not best pleased with the incident, with some footage appearing to show Reed’s ball entering a different tree than where he eventually found his ball.

French Tour pro Matthieu Pavon responded to the video of the incident saying: “Wow wrong tree ?! Maybe optical illusion” followed by a laughing emoji. While his compatriot Mike Lorenzo-Vera went a little further stating: “This guy does not stop.”

Le mec ne s’arrête pas !???

— Mike Lorenzo-Vera (@MikeLorenzoVer1) January 29, 2023

According to Reed himself, he would have gone back to the tee had he not been 100 percent sure the ball was his.

Here Patrick reed comments on the ball on tree here @DubaiDCGolf https://t.co/JxDvKY0KQK pic.twitter.com/t2GPKtu68E

— Golf & Science News (@TOURMISS) January 29, 2023

Ironically, almost a year to the day after being involved in a rule dispute at Torrey Pines, Reed again finds himself as the focus of attention over a drop.

Edoardo Molinari reveals the latest PGA Tour golfer to turn down ‘good offer’ from LIV Golf

Published

21 hours ago

Mar 20, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

While speaking with Gazzetta dello Sport, Ryder Cup vice captain Edoardo Molinari revealed that Nicolai Hojgaard informed him that he’s received a “good offer” from LIV, which he turned down.

“A few weeks ago, I was speaking to Nicolai Højgaard, who had a good offer but turned it down because he knows that if he continues to play well, he will still earn a lot of money but will be freer to make certain decisions and will be sure of playing the majors.”

The 23-year-old Dane is one of the best young European players in the world and has been playing on the PGA Tour full time in 2024.

Molinari then questioned why younger players would choose to leave the PGA Tour for LIV.

“Honestly I don’t understand players who are 20 or 30 years old and risk throwing away their careers to go to LIV Golf,” said the Italian.

“Of course, if they come to me and offer me 300 million, it would change my life but they haven’t come.”

Molinari also shared that he believes LIV players will ultimately have a Ryder Cup path in 2025.

“I think that in two years we will find a way to be able to pick them anyway.”

“The only requirement at the moment is that they are members of the European Tour. I believe someone like Rahm, whatever the cost, wants to play the Ryder Cup. So, I don’t think he will resign from the European Tour.”

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19th Hole

‘Probably the best menu I’ve seen’ – GolfWRXers react to Jon Rahm’s Masters menu

Published

24 hours ago

Mar 20, 2024

Gianni Magliocco

In our forums, our members have been reacting to the unveiling of Jon Rahm’s 2024 Masters menu. The menu consists of a selection of tapas followed by a choice of Basque ribeye steak or turbot, and our members have been sharing their thoughts on the menu in our forum.

Here are a few posts from the thread, but make sure to check out the entire discussion and have your say at the link below.

RapidCat: “Love the family touch in the tapas: Mama Rahm’s Classic Lentil Stew.”
knock it close: “Probably the best menu I’ve seen.”
StoutKing: “Now I’m drooling. Love this tradition at AN.”
Arsilon2: “Best menu since Adam Scott’s IMO.”

Entire Thread: “‘Probably the best menu I’ve seen’ – GolfWRXers react to Jon Rahm’s Masters menu”

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19th Hole

Report: 2028 Olympics set to include a golf mixed team event

Published

1 day ago

Mar 20, 2024

Matt Vincenzi

According to a report from the AP, 2028 Los Angeles Games at Riviera Country Club will feature a golf mixed team event.

Last fall, the PGA Tour and LPGA Tour held a mixed event called the Grant Thornton Invitational which players on both sides seemed to embrace. The 2028 Olympics would have a similar format.

The report indicates that “the current plan for 2028 is for the men to start on Wednesday (instead of Thursday) and finish on Saturday. The team competition could take place on Sunday and Monday. The women would have a practice round on Tuesday and start their competition on Wednesday.”

“The International Olympic Committee tends to frown on awarding two medals from one competition, such as combining scores from individuals into a team medal. That’s why golf officials are proposing a separate event.”

There are still plenty of details to work out regarding the format, but the announcement of the mixed event could come as early as The Masters.