Did Tiger Woods really do that on the course? Over the years, the Genesis Invitational has been in the headlines for many reasons. It is an arena where intense competition thrives, and only the best survive to finish at the top. But one thing is for sure: Every battle during the Signature event is filled with drama. And that is what we’re to reflect on.

From Tiger Woods’s interaction with Justin Thomas to Wyndham Clark following the same path as Jordan Spieth; here are 5 of the most controversial moments in the Genesis Invitational.

5. Jordan Spieth’s clinical error

The 2024 Genesis Invitational proved to be a nightmare for Jordan Spieth. The Dallas local had a great start to the event. After the end of the first round, Spieth was sitting safely in the top 10 of the leaderboard. He was on the verge of making the cut and competing for the weekend leg of the event. However, things took a wild turn for the then-30-year-old who was only noticed much later after the second round ended. Like most players on the course, Spieth couldn’t handle the wild weather on the second day. After the 36 holes were completed, the 3x major winner went from dropped down from 5-under par 66 to 3-under par 139.

That was not even the nightmare we were talking about. Spieth ended up signing off the wrong score on the card before handing it over to the officials. The 31-year-old signed for a par on the par 3 4th hole. But he had actually scored a bogey in that round. The clinical error in the scorecard led to his disqualification and exit from the 2024 Genesis Invitational. Soon after the bizarre incident, the PGA Tour added a rule that gave players a 15-minute window to fix any errors on their scorecards before handing them in.

4. Patrick Cantlay’s wayward methods

Jordan Spieth was not the only golfer who made errors in the 2024 Genesis Invitational. Patrick Cantlay also joined the list of players making silly mistakes on the course. However, unlike Spieth, Cantlay’s ignorance caused harm to others. One can assume that the 32-year-old was not fully in the zone during the first round of the Signature event. Cantlay was already in a comfortable position when he was teeing off in the last hole on the opening day of the event. He was leading at the top with a score of -7.

However, for some crazy reason, Patrick Cantlay forgot about a common etiquette that led to many mishaps. It’s a tradition for golfers to shout ‘fore’ just before they drive. This helps the people around the course stay alert for an incoming ball. However, Cantlay’s wayward stroke off the tee didn’t come with a call, and the ball hit one of the ball-spotters. He then repeated the same in the next stroke, which was heading towards the green. This time, the fans standing around the green were hit with an oncoming ball, completely unaware of when it was hit. Cantlay’s bizarre actions caught a lot of limelight with many fans calling for a hefty fine.

3. Tiger Woods’s banter gone wrong

There is no question that Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas share a great dynamic. Thomas often makes appearances at the Woods family events. Moreover, Charlie Woods thinks of him like an elder brother. Thomas makes it a point to always look out for the young protege whenever they share the course. Such is the relationship between Justin Thomas and the Woods family that the GOAT doesn’t shy away from indulging in a friendly contest sometimes. And that is often followed by a round of banter.

However, things got out of hand in the 2023 Genesis Invitational. On the 9th tee, the GOAT, in the fragile state that he has been over the past few years, managed to outdrive Thomas. As the two shared a group, they walked off the tee together. Possibly asking Thomas to wipe off the blood that has been spilled, Woods threw a tampon at the former’s footsteps. What seemed like a fun banter between friends received a lot of backlash in the media. In the end, the 82x PGAT winner ended up apologizing to the community for his actions.

2. Wyndham Clark’s ignorant mistake

Jordan Spieth was not the first one who didn’t check his card. Back in 2022, Wyndham Clark teed off in the first round of the Genesis Invitational. The then 28-year-old had not established himself as a top player yet. But he was still deemed as extremely talented and a future major winner. However, he didn’t perform that well on the first day of the event, with a score of 6-over par 77.

But Clark’s misery wasn’t ending there as he had made another major error at the end of the round. The Denver local had signed off the wrong scorecard before passing it on to the tournament officials. Once Clark’s mistake was recognized, he was disqualified after the first round of the tournament.

1. Hideki Matsuyama’s illegal act

Hideki Matsuyama faced a tough challenge as he teed off in the final round of the 2024 Genesis Invitational. He was 6 strokes behind the 54-hole leader, Patrick Cantlay. After a hard-fought round, the Japanese native finally took the outright lead from the only man chasing him, Will Zalatoris. Matsuyama had a 17th hole 3-stroke lead from Zalatoris when the latter still had 2 rounds to play.

But it was not his lead in the 17th hole that grabbed the attention. It was in fact the assumption that Matsuyama had moved the ball while inspecting it on the green. Some fans saw the ball move before Matsuyama finally putt his Srixon Z-Star XV for the birdie. Fans started accusing the Japanese golfer of cheating to win the Signature event. But with no evidence of the illegal act, Hideki Matsuyama was saved.

These were some of the biggest controversies at the Genesis Invitational that grabbed a lot of attention. Can you think of any other incident that could have made this list? Let us know in the comments section.