Rory McIlroy Addresses Patrick Reed Cheating Situation: ‘I Don’t Think It Would Be A Big Deal If It Wasn’t Patrick Reed’

patrick reed cheating

Getty Image / David Cannon


Patrick Reed was caught cheating during the third round of the Hero World Challenge in The Bahamas this past week. He improved his lie in a waste bunker and was slapped with a two-shot penalty before carding a triple bogey on the Par 5 11th.

Since the incident, there has been plenty of reaction from fellow Tour players. Cameron Smith came out and said he hopes fans at this week’s Presidents Cup give it to him and that his excuse for blaming the penalty on the camera angle was bullshit.

Now Rory McIlroy has spoken about the situation and he thinks Reed’s reputation is why this is being blown up so much by the media and why players aren’t giving him any sort of benefit of the doubt.

I don’t think the intent is there. But it’s also very hard for me to believe he didn’t feel what he was doing. It’s a hard one. I would never like to think anybody was intentionally improving their lie……but there’s an obliviousness to it, almost like it’s his pre-shot routine.

“I don’t think it would be a big deal if it wasn’t Patrick Reed. I think, it’s almost like, a lot of people within the game, it’s almost like a hobby to kick him while it’s down. If it wasn’t Patrick Reed, it wouldn’t be getting quite so much attention, it’s going to make things really difficult down in Australia for him.”

McIlroy is always fantastic with the media whether it be a super basic question or a rather awkward situation like this one involving Reed. His explanation here is pretty spot on and it’s easy to agree with him that if it was pretty much any other player on Tour then this wouldn’t have been such a major ordeal.

Reed is used to hearing it from the fans at team events, but this week in Australia could be an entirely different animal after this incident in The Bahamas.

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