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7 Golfers Fans Love to Hate

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Professional touring golf is largely a civilized affair. Thus, we don't get the great antagonists and bad boys of other sports. Heck, the PGA Tour doesn't even tell us when a player is reprimanded or suspended.

Still, in a generally bland environment of walking advertisements for the latest in performance golf shirts and distance-increasing equipment, (many) golf fans root passionately against a few golfers.

And there are two varieties of the rooted-against: pariahs and divisive figures (think Lance Armstrong and LeBron James).

Who are the Armstrongs and Jameses of the golfing world?

Read on to find out.

Colin Montgomerie

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Although Colin Montgomerie plays primarily on the Champions Tour these days and sees the majority of his PGA Tour action through the windows of the Sky Sports commentary booth, he earns a special mention here. Why? Well, for the magnitude of American golf fans' contempt for the 51-year-old Scot, of course.

Montgomerie first sparred with Americans at the 1997 U.S. Open at Congressional, which only inflamed the U.S. faithful at the Ryder Cup two years later. The most notable name Montgomery was called? Mrs. Doubtfire.

Monty got the last laugh as he sank the winning putts at the 1997 and 2004 Ryder Cups.

Years later, he said of the heckling, "I made a mistake and answered back. And I paid for it for about 10 years," per Golf.com.

Phil Mickelson

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There are two camps when it comes to Phil Mickelson: Either you love the reckless abandon with which he plays the game and find him to be a genuine, down-to-earth family man, or you think, well, the opposite.

FIGJAM (F---, I'm good—just ask me), as he was affectionately referred to by tour players in his early years, has a reputation for being something of a whiner. You can see how he reacted to being called FIGJAM by a fan in the video above. (Hint: not well.)

Writing for Golf Channel, Joe Posnanski suggested responses of Mickelson leaving the 2013 U.S. Open to see his daughter speak at her eighth grade graduation were a perfect illustration of the Mickelson divide. Either you felt like it was the touching gesture of a committed family man, or you felt it was a made-for-TV spectacle that evidenced a lack of dedication to winning the major that has eluded him thus far.

Vijay Singh

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Ah, the Big Fijian, as Vijay Singh's fans (would) call him (if he had any).

Between the cheating scandal when Singh was a struggling young professional to the recent deer antler spray saga, Singh has had no problem drawing negative attention during his career.

However, his cold, distant demeanor, the eternal look of displeasure contorting his face and his unwillingness to talk to the press rub golf fans the wrong way.

Bubba Watson

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Once regarded as a breath of fresh air on the buttoned-up PGA Tour, Bubba Watson has found his way into the pariah camp.

Several incidents over the past two seasons have solidified his status as a golfer fans love to hate.

However, Watson's behavior at last year's PGA Championship typified "Bad Bubba." Steve DiMeglio ofUSA Today wrote:

He refused to participate in the Long Drive Contest before the tournament started despite being one of the longest hitters in golf.

Then he treated his caddie, Ted Scott, like a broken tee, especially during a boorish second round when he dropped an obscenity after a poor shot, complained about water on his club face and actually made Scott tee up a ball for him so he wouldn't get wet in the rain.

Rory Sabbatini

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Rory Sabbatini is not a divisive figure on tour. Rather, he is almost universally reviled.

He was not well-liked prior to a nasty split with his ex-wife, and her revelations about Sabbatini have done further damage to his reputation (a feat few thought possible).

Consider this, via Golf Today: "Rory Sabbatini is the most hated man in golf. So says the result of a survey by Sports Illustrated in which 25 percent of pros polled named the 32-year-old South African as their least favorite playing partner."


Bashing Tiger Woods, flipping out on teenage volunteers and jawing with Sean O'Hair, Sabo has run the gauntlet of offensive behavior.

Patrick Reed

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Four-time winner Patrick Reed first ruffled feathers with his comments after winning the 2014 WGC-Cadillac Championship. He compared himself to Tiger Woods and declared he was one of the top five golfers in the world.

He landed in hot water again after on-course microphones picked up the golfer using a homophobic slur to chastise himself for missing a putt.

Whether you approve of Reed's confidence and appreciate his on-course passion or consider him to be an arrogant blowhard who needs to calm down, he's a golfer fans love to hate.

Kevin Na

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While Kevin Na's slow play is aggravating to watch, he's certainly not the only tortoise-like player on tour. He has, however, become something of a poster child for painfully slow golf.

Na is one of the few golfers in recent memory to be the target of sustained on-course heckling. At last year's Arnold Palmer Invitational, he was the target of some less-than-kind words. Fans also mocked him at the 2012 Players Championship (check out the clip here).

To his credit, the native South Korean is working on the problem. "I try my best to not affect the guys I play with. I've improved 90 percent. I'm very conscious of the guys in front of me and behind me always looking. I've gotten a lot of compliments, which I appreciate," he said, per Jeff Rude of Golfweek.

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Source: https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2384568-7-golfers-that-fans-love-to-hate

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