Sta Elena Golf Club, Laguna (Philippines) (AFP) – Patrick Reed, once labelled “the most hated man in golf”, opened up Friday about the toll taken on his family by allegations of cheating that have dogged his career. Years on from the vitriolic headlines, Reed said he still suffers from what he calls a “false” bad-boy reputation, and so does his family.
“My kids have been bullied at school so that’s where it’s uncalled for,” Reed told AFP after shooting a six-under-par 66 in the second round of the Asian Tour’s International Series Philippines. The American said it was one thing for people to call him names, but he wants his detractors to back off from his children — 11-year-old daughter Windsor-Wells and eight-year-old son Barrett Benjamin.
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“They say a lot of stuff, it’s all false,” said the 2018 US Masters champion about recurring allegations he has cheated or bent the rules with unsportsmanlike behaviour. “When they all of a sudden look at your children and say stuff about them, it’s like you don’t even know my children and why would you even bring kids into it? It’s not fun having to deal with some of the stuff that we deal with. The great thing is I have an amazing support team at home and an amazing family.”
The 35-year-old might not win any popularity contests back home, but he is well liked in Asia, where he is playing in the Philippines for the first time and gaining a new set of fans. Reed has been taking time to sign autographs and smile for selfies at the Sta. Elena Golf Club this week. Next week he will defend his Hong Kong Open title after pulling in record crowds there last year where he shot a scintillating 59 in the third round.
While a fan favourite in Asia, Reed does not know if he can ever mend his reputation half a world away in the United States. “The kind of person I am on and off the golf course hasn’t been portrayed very well in the media throughout my career, but it’s almost impossible to control others,” he said. “All you can do is control yourself, so I feel like I’m doing everything the right way, living the right way.”
“Everyone I play pro-ams with and everybody I meet, they’re all like: ‘Man, you’re nothing like what the media portrays you as.’ So as long as that just continues happening, at some point it will turn around.”
– Ryder Cup hurt –
Reed had another nickname in the past, “Captain America”, for his talismanic exploits on his lone Ryder Cup appearance in 2018. He missed out on a captain’s pick this year for the US team beaten at Bethpage, despite coming third in the US Masters and winning LIV Dallas in 2025. That also stung, but he said the captain Keegan Bradley had kept in touch and let him know where he stood, “which was nice.”
“You’re always disappointed when you don’t make those teams, it means so much to me to represent my country,” said Reed. “It definitely hurts and I definitely feel like I could have been a huge asset to the team, especially at a place I won before. That was his decision, but I feel like he tried to put out the best team he could.”
Reed doesn’t think even Captain America at his best could have made much difference against an inspired Europe side. “Through the first two days I don’t really care what team he threw out there, I don’t think we’d be able to hang with the way the Euros played,” said Reed. “From top to bottom on Friday and Saturday it was just unreal.”
He has not given up on being back for the 2027 Ryder Cup in Ireland. “That would be great, yeah,” he said. “I love playing, especially on foreign soil. It’s always kind of good to go over there and be the guy that’s a thorn in their side.”
© 2024 AFP
