Gary Player said it was ‘quite sad to see’ what happened to Patrick Reed at the 2018 Masters

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Patrick Reed won The Masters in 2018 – a triumph that Gary Player achieved three times throughout his career.

In 2018, while Player had long since established himself as a golfing legend, Reed was still trying to prove himself on the very biggest stage.

The 35-year-old had won five times on the PGA Tour before his Masters victory, and he informed everyone that he was one of the best five golfers in the world four years prior to his Augusta National triumph.

However, he still wasn’t being discussed as one of the favourites heading into the 2018 Masters. That’s something he has had to deal with his entire life.

Reed missed out on the Ryder Cup team this year, as he did in 2023, and many believe he would have been a huge asset to the US team.

The man from Texas has always had to fight against the grain when it comes to the reputation he holds in the game.

Gary Player said it was sad to see what happened to Patrick Reed at the 2018 Masters

A few years ago, Player highlighted how Augusta patrons cheer harder for Rory McIlroy than Reed at the Masters seven years ago.

However, the South African golfing legend noticed something else that happened immediately after Reed’s victory that simply wasn’t fair.

When speaking after Reed won at Augusta National in 2018, Player made a big claim about how the 35-year-old is often misrepresented, as quoted by the Houston Chronicle.

“Patrick won in great style, and he behaved well. But I think the media were very unkind to him. One said he didn’t hug his wife. Well, he gave his wife one of the greatest hugs I’ve seen in my life on No. 18. Why say that when it’s not the truth? They were so mean to him. It was quite sad to see that.”

Once again, it was very much was a case of the media making Reed out to be a villain, and Player had to leap in to defend the American.

It seems like whatever Reed does, he will always be looked at as the bad guy, and it’s simply not fair.

What Jack Nicklaus said about Patrick Reed

If you need a real barometer of what the 2018 Masters champion is really like as a person, Jack Nicklaus is the man to ask.

Jack Nicklaus said Reed has been a gentleman every single time the two have met, and that says a lot about what the LIV Golf star is really like.

The Golden Bear said: “If people think you’re a good person, if you handle yourself well, they’ll eventually come over to you. I think that’s the way I always felt. I can only be me, and Patrick can only be himself. I’ll say this, he’s a good player. And every time I’ve met him, he’s had nothing but a smile on his face, a good firm handshake and a pleasant thing to say. So I’ll judge him on what I’ve seen.”

That really is a ringing endorsement. The Reed slander has gone on for too long now, and it seems as though whatever he does, nothing will ever change, unfortunately.

All Reed can do is continue to work hard on his game and prove certain fans and members of the media wrong on the golf course.