Top 10 in 2014: Controversies

Do you really need a task force to figure out that the U.S. got dusted in foursomes? The PGA of America said yes. Really, the Ryder Cup was the gift that kept on giving in 2014, and those gifts will extend to 2015 and beyond as the blue-ribbon panel tries to figure out how to take down Team Europe.

An otherwise banner year for Patrick Reed hit a bump at the HSBC in November, when his mouth, already known for top-5 proclamations and the shushing of European galleries, got him in trouble for real this time. Following a three-putt for bogey, Reed chastised himself with a gay slur picked up by on-course microphones. He quickly apologized, calling his “word choice ... unacceptable.”

The European Tour came under fire in May when Alastair Forsyth’s caddie, Iain McGregor, died of a heart attack on the course. Play at the Madeira Islands Open was suspended for an hour before it resumed. The decision to continue golf after such a tragedy earned the Euro Tour plenty of criticism from media members and players alike.

Who can forget Brandel Chamblee and Frank Nobilo’s epic battle about whether Tiger Woods’ swing was hurting his back or his back was hurting his swing. Ultimately, Woods decided that it was time to part ways with swing coach Sean Foley, eventually admitting that he was unable to do what Foley wanted when it came to his swing. The breakup was publicly amicable, but everything with Tiger is a controversy.

The Martha Stewart of the PGA Tour Phil Mickelson is not - although it looked that way for a while. Lefty spent part of his 2014 dodging questions about the FBI’s probe into his financial portfolio over allegations of insider trading. Mickelson was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing. Invest wisely, folks.

Come on, we’ve all played up in a large group in the dark to squeeze that last hole in. We’ve just never done it in a major. Rory McIlroy was allowed to hit his tee shot on the 72nd hole at the PGA Championship before Phil Mickelson and Rickie Fowler played their second shots, but neither Fowler nor Mickelson realized McIlroy would be pseudo-playing up with them. Rory won his fourth major and Rickie and Phil attempted to choose their words carefully about the arrangement after the round.

“I believe in myself and – especially with how hard I’ve worked – I’m one of the top five players in the world.” And just like that, Patrick Reed went from nice story, winning the WGC at Doral, to Public Enemy No. 1 in the golf world, which is admittedly a low standard for public-enemy status. On a positive note, this was at least golf controversy, as opposed to most of the other moments on this list.

Speaking of which, we come to Mr. Leave of Absence himself. Dustin Johnson announced on July 31 that he was taking a break from the PGA Tour to overcome some “personal challenges.” Three days later, Golf.com reported he was actually suspended six months for a third failed drug test, coming up positive for cocaine. Both Johnson and the Tour denied the report. You can see how this might be perceived as a controversy.

Ted Bishop usually found himself at the center of controversy, and it was controversy that finally became his undoing. Bishop’s ‘Lil Girl’ tweet directed at Ian Poulter ended in his ouster from the PGA of America. Was the punishment too harsh? Should he have resigned on his own? Like anything with Ted, there was debate.

Finally, we come to the moment that’s made pretty much every one of our Top-10 lists. Was it in poor form for Phil Mickelson to rip his captain in public? Was the U.S. team’s poor play even Tom Watson’s fault in the first place? Was Mickelson justified in the sense that the PGA of America is now reviewing its Ryder Cup practices? We guess we won’t know until 2016.