Hate mob drove me to victory
REED FANS FLAMES
PATRICK REED admits being unpopular inspired him to become Masters champion.
Reed outplayed crowd favourite Rory McIlroy before holding off charges from Jordan Spieth and Rickie Fowler to win the Green Jacket and his first Major title.
But his triumph was greeted with muted applause due to the fact he is one of the most disliked golfers on the circuit.
In contrast to the excitement and emotion of 2017 winner Sergio Garcia, thousands of fans walked out of Augusta before Reed had even sunk his winning putt on the 18th green.
Fans dislike Reed due to his brash attitude, allegations of him cheating, stealing and lying while at college, and the fact he hasn’t spoken to his parents since getting married to his former caddie Justine in 2012.
Fire
But Reed insists he couldn’t care less if people hate him – and reckons the fact they wanted McIlroy to win motivated him to take down the Northern Irishman.
“I used it as motivation,” said the 27-year-old Texan.
“People who go against me just fuel my fire. It allows me to go and try to prove to them that I have every right to win just as much as everyone else does.
“I walked up to the first tee and had a really welcoming cheer from the fans, but then when Rory walked up to the tee, his cheer was a little louder.
“That’s just another thing that kind of played into my hands. Not only did it fuel my fire a little bit, but it just takes the pressure off me and adds it back to him.
“Some of them were cheering more for Rory. At the same time, you had a lot of the pundits picking him to win over me. ® from JEREMY CROSS in Augusta
“The more chatter you have in your ear about expectations and everything, the harder it is to play golf.
“I just went out there and just tried to play golf the best I could and tried to stay in the moment and not worry about everything else.
“I’ve always believed I have what it takes. Now I’ve backed it up in the winner’s circle and I can’t wait to celebrate it with the family.” Not all of them, though. The most notable aspect of Reed’s celebrations was about who wasn’t there to greet him – instead of who was.
His parents Bill and Jeanette and sister Hannah all live down the road in Augusta but watched Reed’s life-changing victory on TV at home.
Reed has not spoken to them in six years and the feud runs so deep that his wife had his parents thrown out of Pinehurst during the 2014 US Open after they’d been spotted in the crowd following him on the course.
Reed refuses to discuss the family rift.
Instead, he prefers to focus on the self-belief that has taken him to the top of the golfing world.
“To win a Major you have to believe in yourself. If not, you have zero chance,” said Reed, who got a message of congratulations from US President Donald Trump.
“I’ve always believed in myself. I belong out here. I believed I could win at the highest level.”