There are obvious perks to being a professional golfer on one of the most prestigious tours on the planet, but there are definitely drawbacks as well.
One of those things that can be a blessing and a curse is the platform pros are saddled with day in and day out. Former Georgia Bulldog Lee McCoy found out in painful fashion how that platform can backfire last week when he struggled to finish his final round at the Web.com Tour’s Club Colombia Championship and took to Twitter afterward to blow off some steam.
Lee McCoy learned a valuable lesson on twitter this week: If you to talk down about kids, you’re going to get serious backlash.
Check it out: https://t.co/RjoF9nDUVc pic.twitter.com/T7VU1wjcGD
— Golf Channel (@GolfChannel) February 12, 2018
GolfChannel.com had more on what McCoy said and some of the reaction from his fellow pros.
Ben Taylor won the Web.com Tour’s Club Colombia Championship on Sunday in a six-shot runaway, but there was some drama a little further down the leaderboard.
Lee McCoy bogeyed two of his final three holes to drop from inside the top 10 to a T-20 finish, and he took to Twitter afterward to express his frustrations with the galleries, specifically the kids who were asking for his apparel to keep as souvenirs.
“There were at least 30 kids out there who were there only to try and get free stuff from us. So no, I’m not grateful they were out there,” the 24-year-old said in one Twitter reply.
It wasn’t the only tweet about the incident, however. McCoy, who finished fourth at the 2016 Valspar Championship as an amateur, also claimed that one kid “learned a life lesson” because McCoy refused to give up his hat, glove or shoes after the 18th hole and decided to get political, comparing the conditions of President Trump’s United States to that of South America.
Here is a screenshot of all the tweets, via @TronCarterNLU:
The original tweets have since been deleted. They are below for reference, along with a few other greatest hits from this week. #GrowTheGame pic.twitter.com/9k5t95OvkX
— Tron Carter (@TronCarterNLU) February 12, 2018
That didn’t exactly smooth things over with the angry Twitter mob.
McCoy eventually deleted his entire Twitter account, but not before several fellow pros caught wind of the ordeal and chimed in with their disapproval.
The lesson will be yours if you continue to shun these kids who dream to walk in your “shoes” one day. No one will ask for anything from you, and that will be when you know it’s over. Be careful how quickly you run them off.
— InTheFlesch (@Steve_Flesch) February 12, 2018
Wow. And the 2018 humanity award goes to…..
— bowdo (@bowdo83) February 12, 2018
Thanks @LeeMcCoyGolf for subbing in on twitter for @GraysonMurray !
— Colt Knost (@ColtKnost) February 12, 2018
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