Patrick Reed is moving on with his PGA Tour season this week in Tampa, but remarks that he made Sunday are still reverberating.
In an interview with Golf Channel’s Todd Lewis, Reed said that he intended to challenge allegations in a new book that he cheated during qualifying rounds in college and stole from teammates while at the University of Georgia.
Reed said that the claims were “degrading and false” and requested that a portion of the book be retracted. The four-time PGA Tour winner also said that he had written statements from both Georgia coach Chris Haack and former Augusta State coach Josh Gregory that contradict author Shane Ryan’s claims.
Ryan has since defended his work on Twitter, writing, “Just want to say quickly here that I stand behind my reporting 100%, and I also stand behind the truth of what I wrote.”
Golf writer Stephanie Wei obtained Haack’s statement through Georgia’s Open Records Act and published the statement on her website Tuesday.
In his written statement, Haack said, “While Patrick Reed was at UGA, I was not aware of any allegations of cheating or theft against him, and therefore, allegations of cheating or theft played no role in his dismissal from the UGA golf team.”
Earlier this week, when approached by GolfChannel.com in Las Vegas at the Southern Highlands Collegiate Masters, Haack confirmed that he had given a statement but did not want to elaborate.
“I hope we can put this story behind us,” Haack told GolfChannel.com, “and I wish Patrick and his family nothing but the best in his future endeavors.”
On Thursday, Wei talked to one of Reed’s former teammates, who requested anonymity, and detailed the star’s turbulent start to his Augusta State career.
When reached by GolfChannel.com on Friday, Gregory confirmed that he had given a statement on the allegations but declined to provide any specifics, saying, “I hope Patrick and his family can move on from this, and I wish them the best in the future.”
Ryan’s book, entitled “Slaying the Tiger: A year inside the ropes on the new PGA Tour,” is scheduled to be released in May.
