Zach Johnson had a poor performance at the ongoing Masters tournament since day one. He finished his first round with a 4 over par before giving another poor performance on day two, finishing 3 over par. However, while hitting the shots on the par-3 12th hole on day two, he faced difficulties which ended in him suffering with a triple-bogey.
Soon after, the American professional golfer was caught on camera using profane language in front of Augusta fans who sarcastically cheered him on after his defeat. He went on to say “F*ck Off!” right after his triple bogey blunder. This footage stirred considerable controversy among fans and caused quite an uproar.
Nevertheless, after the end of the round, Zach Johnson apologized for his actions, explaining that it was a sensitive moment for him and that his frustrations were directed towards himself due to his dissatisfaction with his performance.
Speaking about the same, Zach Johnson said (via France24):
“That I swore at the patrons? That’s laughable. That’s completely laughable. I can’t hear the patrons, number one. Number two, I just made a triple bogey on the 12th hole that evidently is going to make me miss the cut, which at the time I knew was pretty sensitive in the sense that I needed to keep making pars.”
He added how it was directed towards him and he couldn’t hear anything behind him:
“If I’ve said anything, which I’m not going to deny, especially if it’s on camera, one, I apologize, and two, it was fully directed towards myself entirely because I can’t hear anything behind me. Does that make sense?”
Zach Johnson’s frustrations were evident as he failed to make the cut for the weekend rounds. However, this wasn’t the first instance where he expressed his anger during a tournament. At the 2024 Phoenix Open, he was involved in a heated exchange with spectators that caused quite a stir too.
When Zach Johnson Clashed With Rowdy Spectators At The 2024 WM Phoenix Open
During the WM Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale, Zach Johnson was caught on camera expressing frustration on the crowd. He was heard telling a group of fans to shut up at the 15th-hole tee box during the third round of the tournament.
Zach Johnson said (via Golf Week):
“Somebody said it, I’m just sick of it. Just shut up.”
It should be noted that the precise details of what exactly happened remain unclear. However, Zach Johnson was not the only one to lose his temper. Billy Horschel also had an outburst directed at a fan after noticing some fans disturbing a player during his swing. The atmosphere at the WM Phoenix Open is always loud and rowdy, but this year it went way out of hand. With a fan falling to people being denied entry into the course and multiple complaits leading to arrests, this year’s tournament was under investigation.
Nonetheless, although Zach Johnson has apologized for his behavior at Augusta National, it serves as a reminder that golfers should be mindful of their conduct, especially during some of the biggest golf tournaments.
