Robert McIntyre seems to have reached his limit, and it looks like Masters officials have had enough too.
After his shots found the water on the 15th hole during his first attempt, McIntyre reacted emotionally by flipping off the camera. He ended up with a quadruple bogey on that hole.
On the 17th hole, he slammed his club into the ground after his second shot, and he was heard swearing on holes 12 and 13.
“It’s going left to right now, damn it!” he exclaimed following the 12th hole.
As reported by The Scotsman, Masters officials reprimanded him and reminded him of the tournament’s code of conduct.
While such behavior might slip under the radar at other tournaments, Augusta has higher expectations.
By the end of the first day, McIntyre was tied for 82nd place out of 91 players, far from the top 50 needed to qualify for the next round.
He sought to turn things around on Friday, making three birdies on his front nine after starting with a double bogey.
After his outburst on Thursday, he chose not to talk to reporters.
This was a tough start for McIntyre, who came into the Masters ranked eighth globally, behind notable players like defending champion Rory McIlroy and top-ranked Scottie Scheffler. He had performed well earlier in the season, finishing fourth at the Players Championship and tying for second at the Valero Texas Open.
However, his behavior on Thursday wasn’t entirely unexpected.
“That was the worst,” he had remarked after last week’s Valero Texas Open, standing firm in a later media interaction.
“I know I’m insecure, I know I use bad language and all that, but that’s just me,” he admitted.
Even before the Masters began, he expressed similar sentiments on Tuesday.
“I’m trying to do my best on the golf course,” he said, asserting his right to react freely. “I’m a sportsman and this is a live sport. I’m not going to change my reaction just because someone is watching.”
“I try to do the best I can and still take my time to sign autographs for kids, but when I’m playing golf, I’m at the red line.”
Now, it seems his actions have finally caught up with him.
