Patrick Reed threw a tee at Rory McIlroy in disgust after being snubbed by the Northern Irishman on the apply vary as golf’s civil conflict took a nasty twist.
American Reed is famously unstable character and one in all golf’s main ‘rebels’ who deserted the PGA Tour final 12 months in favour of the Saudi-backed LIV Golf sequence, inflicting tensions to simmer all through 2022 with those that stayed loyal to present golf infrastructure, together with McIlroy.
That appears to be like set to proceed into 2023 as flashpoints happen whereas LIV gamers compete in DP World Tour occasions to earn official world rating factors that aren’t at present accessible for LIV tournaments, though an arbitration case is at present ongoing to resolve whether or not the Tour has the precise to droop the rebels.
In Dubai this week, Reed is claimed to have saluted McIlroy’s caddie Harry Diamond with out incident earlier than approaching the Northern Irishman, who was on his haunches on the time, trying on the floor.
Reed stood close to McIlroy for few seconds with the intention of claiming good day, to no response, earlier than saluting him however once more getting no acknowledgement from McIlroy. At that time, Reed gave up and walked away however not earlier than pulling a tee from his pocket and throwing it in McIlroy’s path in disgust.
The Irish Independent reported that the incident occurred on the Emirates Golf Club, the place each gamers are competing within the DP World Tour occasion, the Hero Dubai Desert Classic, which begins later this week.
The incident was apparently the speak of the apply vary and comes on the heels of stress throughout final 12 months’s {golfing} calendar, when Reed hit out at McIlroy – who had spoken strongly in opposition to the rebels and their participation in Tour occasions.
McIlroy felt LIV golfers mustn’t have been allowed to compete in final September’s BMW PGA Championship and mocked LIV’s shortened format, saying on the time: “They shouldn’t be right here, however once more that’s simply my opinion. But we’re all going to tee it up on the primary tee and we’re all going to go play 72 holes, which is a novelty for them at this level, after which we’ll go from there.”
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Reed responded in an interview with The Times as he lambasted McIlroy and PGA Tour professional Billy Horschel, who had backed the Brit’s feedback.
“I really feel like [Rory] making these varieties of feedback is insulting,” Reed stated. “Let’s be sincere, I’ve [played the DP World Tour] extra constantly than a number of the Europeans on the PGA Tour, so for them to take photographs at different guys, particularly Billy and Rory taking photographs on the LIV guys saying they shouldn’t be right here.”
The pair famously clashed through the 2016 Ryder Cup in a fierce partisan environment at Hazeltine, Minnesota, producing probably the most memorable matches within the historical past of the outdated battle between the USA and Europe, which Reed ultimately gained.
They are set to return up in opposition to one another as soon as extra within the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome later this 12 months.
