Patrick Reed didn’t do himself — and, by extension, his Presidents Cup teammates — any favors when he insisted that his rules infraction at the preceding Hero World Challenge was made even worse by an unfortunate “camera angle” that didn’t provide a proper perspective. It was bad enough that he swept his wedge behind his ball nestled in a bunker, not one but twice, taking out sand that would most certainly have impeded his swing prior to impact. His subsequent “acceptance” of the two-shot penalty meted on him for the no-no while, at the same time, contending that he didn’t really improve his situation in so doing was far worse.
Considering the tumultuous history of the offending player and his participation in the Presidents Cup, other members of Team USA found themselves having to answer query after query regarding his transgression. Heading into the biennial competition, the chore was, at best, distracting, and, at worst, downright debilitating. They had far more important things to worry about than to lawyer for Reed. And it didn’t help that he continued to be defiant in the aftermath. At one point during practice, he even mimicked the backswing that got him in trouble — as if to mock those who chose to treat the turn of events seriously.
Reed’s recalcitrance notwithstanding, he is still human. For all his seeming strength and defiance, he wound up being affected by the heckling he got from the pro-Internationals crowd. The taunts were vicious and often personal, and while he kept his cool for the most part, they affected his game. He played atrociously his first three times out, leading to his benching in the afternoon session of Day Three. And by the time he geared up for singles, he had lost his caddie, who wrongly tangled with a boisterous fan and was thereby suspended by the PGA Tour.
Creditably, Reed managed to win in convincing fashion with his swing coach carrying his bag. No doubt, he derived no small measure of confidence from United States skipper Tiger Woods, who kept pulling him up and believing in him. Still, it’s fair to wonder whether he will be a boon or a bane in future team competitions. Including last year’s Ryder Cup, during which he lambasted captain Jim Furyk and threw teammates under the bus, he has been less than stellar as part of a collective effort.
There can be no second-guessing results, though, and Reed knows the best way for him to acquit himself is to claim an automatic slot in forthcoming Ryder and Presidents Cups. He’s not likely to be an at-large selection anytime soon. Redemption won’t come easy, but he’ll go a long way by first admitting he needs it, and then making sure he doesn’t regress.
Anthony L. Cuaycong has been writing Courtside since BusinessWorld introduced a Sports section in 1994. He is a consultant on strategic planning, operations and Human Resources management, corporate communications, and business development.
