Patrick Reed is making issues attention-grabbing for Tiger and the Presidents Cup
JERSEY CITY, N.J. — It was a quaint, throwaway line on the time, a backhanded praise thrown Patrick Reed’s method within the aftermath of his 2018 Masters victory, a primary main title and a win solidifying his place among the many sport’s younger elite gamers.
Tiger Woods, who had taken Reed underneath his wing when he served as an assistant on the 2016 Ryder Cup and 2017 Presidents Cup, tweeted his congratulations by saying, “At worst you’ve gotten assured your self a captain’s choose for subsequent yr’s Presidents Cup.”
For Woods, the 2019 U.S. Presidents Cup captain, it was a intelligent line directed at one among America’s greatest gamers who by no means can be in want of such charity this yr. Or so it appeared.
Reed’s sport fell off, and he discovered himself nicely outdoors the listing of computerized qualifiers, a lot in order that he mainly wanted to win right here and this coming weekend at Medinah to earn one of many eight computerized qualifying locations.
1 Associated
He undoubtedly wished to win the Northern Belief on Sunday for causes past the staff competitors in December, particularly as a result of there had been no victories in any respect since Augusta Nationwide 16 months in the past.
“It was extra frustration and questioning happening as a result of I felt like I used to be doing a whole lot of issues very well,” mentioned Reed, 29, who now has seven PGA Tour victories. “Felt like we had been working towards the suitable method and enjoying golf on the golf course the suitable method and the numbers weren’t producing. It was simply form of carrying on you mentally.”
Consider all that has transpired since that earlier victory for Reed, who did not sniff a win the remainder of the yr, then turned the central goal for U.S. derision when he publicly slammed Jordan Spieth and U.S. Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk for breaking apart the profitable Reed-Spieth pairing at earlier competitions.
The U.S. suffered a lopsided defeat to Europe in Paris, and Reed had not directly instructed that he wasn’t thrilled having Woods as his accomplice. By no means thoughts that Reed largely performed lousily, and that Woods was coming off his emotional victory on the Tour Championship, his sport additionally suffered, and he had served as a mentor to Reed.
Jared C. Tilton/Getty Photographs
However was he actually criticizing Woods?
All events instructed that this was smoothed over in time, however when Woods was requested about it final December, he merely mentioned the 2 “spoke for a protracted time frame and we talked amongst us and it’ll keep between us.”
Hmmm.
And as Reed slipped farther and farther down the listing, did there exist a risk that Woods wouldn’t choose him? Reed, in his 40th world rankings factors occasion worldwide because the Masters, had posted simply seven top-10s.
It is a subplot that existed right here on the Northern Belief and heading into this week’s BMW Championship, the ultimate qualifying occasion for each the U.S. and Worldwide groups in addition to the second of three FedEx Cup Playoff occasions. Nevertheless it’s one made way more tenable now that Reed has gained once more — and posted his fourth top-12 end in his previous six occasions.
He moved from 17th within the Presidents Cup standings to 12th — one spot forward of Woods — and would possible make the staff with one other victory at Medinah. Wanting that, Reed would wish to depend on an at-large choice from Woods, who will not make his 4 captain’s picks till early November.
“It is the identical factor he all the time mentioned: ‘Good golf takes care of itself. Exit and play nicely. Exit and play golf like you know the way to play,'” mentioned Reed, who has moved to second within the FedEx Cup standings behind Brooks Koepka.
A part of his resurgence is because of a pressured break he took following the PGA Championship, the place he missed the minimize in Might. Already on Lengthy Island, Reed took three weeks off and an unprecedented 10 days with out choosing up a membership. Requested in regards to the final time he had achieved that, he mentioned, “In all probability 1990, the yr I used to be born.”
The break gave him a spark.
“I got here again and I am hitting the ball farther, I’ve a transparent image on what I am attempting to do unexpectedly,” he mentioned. “I come out and I begin hitting the ball the place it is purported to go. I am beginning to suppose clearly whereas I am on the market and numbers are beginning to produce and the sport begins turning round. I may need gotten right into a state of affairs the place I used to be working too exhausting.”
Reed’s final-round 69 at Liberty Nationwide was good for a one-shot victory over Abraham Ancer and two photographs forward of Harold Varner and Jon Rahm, who had overtaken Reed earlier within the spherical.
zero:16
Patrick Reed sinks a birdie putt on the 14th gap on his technique to the win at The Northern Belief.
If that wasn’t sufficient, there are quite a few alternatives to impress captain Woods following the FedEx Cup, together with the PGA Tour’s three-tournament Asia swing that features a cease in Japan, the place Woods is scheduled to play. Reed can also be scheduled to play a number of European Tour occasions.
“For me, it is simply proceed enjoying good golf and that can all handle itself,” Reed mentioned. “If Tiger needs to name me, he is aware of I will all the time name him again. I am not going to bug him. If I proceed to go on the market and play good golf, I do know he will make the suitable choice on choosing 4 guys that he feels are greatest for the staff on the finish of the day.”
Profitable once more definitely makes that call simpler.