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Tyrrell Hatton threw a tantrum, tossed a ball and called his driver all manner of unspeakable things on his way out of contention at the PGA Championship on Friday.
One day, golf’s most combustible character might well get his hands on a major, but it is looking highly unlikely to come at Quail Hollow, where a position of great promise faded dramatically in a blaze of angry words.
The key point for the Englishman came at the 18th, his ninth hole of the day, when he walked on to the tee at five under par, within two of the lead after a pair of early birdies. The unravelling was quite spectacular.
First, his drive at the 474-yard par four went into the creek up the left, which is when his emotions reached critical mass and his words reached the on-course microphones. Staring at his club, he erupted: ‘Piece of s*** c***.’
Alas, rage can be used for fuel or it can launch a golfer off a cliff. Hatton went over the side.
That meant playing his third into thick greenside rough, duffing his pitch into a little hollow in front of the putting surface, and then watching as his fifth stroke rolled up towards the flag, caught a hill, and returned to his feet.
Tyrrell Hatton had a furious tantrum during a mid-round meltdown at the PGA Championship
Hatton had earlier struggled to contain his anger and frustration during his first round
Hatton has been called out for his behaviour multiple times in his career, including at the end of last season at the DP World Tour Championship in Dubai when he snapped his club in two
A triple-bogey seven killed his card and those tee-box thoughts went viral as he played his back nine in one over. After eventually signing for a 73, leaving him one under par for the tournament, seven behind early clubhouse leader Jhonattan Vegas, Hatton said: ‘Yeah, I was running hot in the moment. I’m pretty good at sometimes saying the wrong thing. I’ll leave it at that.’
As ever, a debate will be had over whether this talented 33-year-old is his own worst enemy, and there is more merit in that conversation than po-faced ones around disgracing the game.
Hatton’s wider round showcased his full range – he opened with excellent birdies on the 10th and 11th holes from a combined 34 feet, put a bunker shot to 20 inches to save par at the 13th, and then attempted to drive the 340-yard 14th. Finding water off the tee, he dropped a shot and proceeded to throw the replacement ball into a lake.
A ‘mudball’ on the 15th brought an echo of first-round complaints from Scottie Scheffler and Xander Schauffele, who were unhappy that the PGA of America did not allow preferred lies on the fairway. ‘It’s a bit harsh,’ said Hatton, whose four birdies included one at 17, where he came within inches of an ace, before the doom spiral kicked in.
The LIV rebel, who has top-10 finishes at all four majors, will need fewer drives that burrow into the left-hand rough if he is to stage a weekend charge. He said: ‘If you take those dropped shots, you’re in a nice position going into the weekend. Whereas now I need to have two very good rounds without putting a foot wrong.
‘I’ve had some decent scores around this course in the past, so yes I can go out and play a decent round of golf.’
As for Vegas, the Venezuelan 40-year-old who learned the game by hitting rocks with a broomstick, his 70 to reach eight under will have generated mixed feelings. The four-time winner on the PGA Tour concluded his second-round 70 with a galling double bogey, but also had some absurd luck a hole earlier when a horribly loose tee shot hit a bunker rake and rebounded at a right-angle towards the flag and allowed a par.
At one stage, no fewer than 13 nations were represented among the top-25 on a leaderboard filled with less familiar names. Indeed, for long chunks there was not a single member of the world’s top 20 among them.
Of the early starters, Bryson DeChambeau was the most ominous mover, reaching three under with a 68, while the scoring potential of the course was illustrated by Max Homa’s 64 to improve to five under.
Rory McIlroy had improved by one stroke to two over par through three holes, with the cut line projected at one over. Richard Bland, the 52-year-old Englishman enjoying an Indian summer, was at three under after a 69, alongside Aaron Rai. The latter’s 72 was a turbulent mix of five birdies, four bogeys and a double.
