Captain America has traded his shield for a shovel.
Patrick Reed is living up to his reputation as an agitator at the Presidents Cup, fueled by the cheating controversy that preceded his arrival in Melbourne.
Reed has been a source of constant vitriol from fans and finally responded on Friday, during one of the rare good moments he had in his first two matches.
Reed buried a birdie putt on the 11th hole as one fan yelled “miss” with the ball on the way to the cup. Reed responded by pretending to shovel out of a bunker, a reference to him improving his lie at the World Hero Challenge last week that led to a two-stroke penalty. Reed has denied any wrongdoing and has blamed the baffling situation on the camera angle.
It has led to harsh words between him and International team member Cameron Smith, with the Australian saying their friendship has been ruined.
Reed said the crowd treatment is “exactly what I expected.”
Reed and partner Webb Simpson would go on to lose for the second consecutive day, going down 3&2 to Abraham Ancer and Marc Leishman. Reed and Simpson are paired together again on Friday with the Americans trailing the International team 6½ to 3½.