Every event in the golf world comes with its fair share of controversies, and the 2019 Presidents Cup was far from different. The Presidents Cup in Melbourne, controversy bombarded Australia, and not for the reason you think. The golf spectators lost their collective minds when LIV golfer Patrick Reed’s caddie, Kessler Karain, was involved in a heated dispute with a fan.

The incident transpired right after Reed and his partner, Webb Simpson, lost their four-ball match to Hideki Matsuyama and C.T. Pan at a score of 5 and 3. Karain admitted to having shoved the fan after they hurled insults at Reed. The score disappointed the fan and yelled, “You f—ing suck”, to the duo who were riding in a golf cart.

The caddie took it upon himself to ‘defend’ the golfer and even stated it as per ESPN. “As a caddie, one of your jobs is to protect your player. And unlike several other sports, in golf fans can get pretty close to Athletes,” Karain said as part of his statement. According to Karain, there is a fine line between good banter and disrespect. “We have been known for having fun with some good banter, but after hearing several fans in Australia for 3 days some had taken it too far, I had enough.”

Karain, who was already frustrated with the score, shoved the fan after getting off the cart. “I got off the cart and shoved him, said a couple things, probably a few expletives”, he said. Later the security came in and Karain left as they took the matter into their own hands. Karain also told ESPN that several fans were using disrespectful language at Royal Melbourne and the officials were not doing anything about it.

However, the PGA Tour took serious action, but not against the fans.

Patrick Reed lost his caddie in the final round

The PGA Tour took their time and responded swiftly. They announced that Karain would not participate in the final session of the 2019 Presidents Cup because of punching a fan after a match. Reed accepted the decision as he was trying to prioritize the team’s focus on winning. Even Team Captain Tiger Woods said, “Today, they just didn’t play well, and that happens”, after Reed’s terrible performance.

Reed’s rules violation followed this incident at the 2019 Hero World Challenge, which sparked intense scrutiny and verbal abuse from the fans. International Team’s Cameron Smith recalled the Hero World Challenge incident and said, “I don’t have any sympathy for anyone that cheats. I hope the crowd absolutely gives it to not only him, but everyone [on the American team].”

This statement only added fuel to the controversy surrounding Patrick Reed’s rules violation and Reed’s on-course struggles became more and more frequent, eventually leading to not one but three consecutive losses paired with Webb Simpson. And Thursday’s round with C.T. Pan and Hideki Matsuyama was just what the fans needed to tear the golfer apart. The international golfer beat them 1-up, followed by a 3-and-2 loss to Abraham Ancer and Marc Leishman on Friday.

But still, Team USA managed to win the game with a score of 16-14. And now that the 2024 Presidents Cup is on, the fans are ready for the new drama. So are you excited to see who will take home the trophy? Let us know in the comment section below!