Patrick Reed responds to heckler with ‘shovelling’ move
Published:
Patrick Reed responded to a heckler at the Presidents Cup with a ‘shovel’ move in response to taunts about last week’s controversial rules incident
Patrick Reed had a new move to try and silence the Presidents Cup crowds at Royal Melbourne during Friday’s foursomes matches following a week of controversy.
His reception this week comes in direct response to the two shot penalty he received at the Hero World Challenge after cameras caught him improving his lie in a bunker. Reed laid partial blame on the camera angle, and while Rory McIlroy said we should give him the benefit of the doubt, International player Cameron Smith was less forgiving, stating he had no ‘sympathy for anyone that cheats’.
The fallout has certainly given the Australian fans more reason that normal to heckle Captain America, evident by one fan asking “you gonna make your caddie carry 14 clubs and a shovel?” during the first day of play.
He didn’t respond to that one, but clearly it played on his mind, as after someone shouted ‘miss’ at him before his putt found the bottom of the cup on Friday, he signalled ‘I can’t hear you’, before switching up his signature ‘shh’ response to the crowd by miming the using a shovel as his celebration.
It was odd timing, given that when Reed made the gesture he and Webb Simpson were 2 down to Abraham Ancer and Marc Leishman. That was at the 11th, his putt to halve the hole, and they went on to lose 3&2. It was Reed and Simpson’s second loss in a row.
And whether you think his new shovel move was ill-advised or just ‘fun with the crowd’ (PGA Tour), what we know for sure is that this time he definitely can’t fault the camera angle.
