The Internet Invitational was supposed to be golf’s biggest influencer party. A $1 million prize was on the line. Cold beers filled the carts. Friends competed together at Big Cedar Lodge in Missouri. But for one witness, the festivities turned into a moral nightmare. He spotted what he believed was cheating.

Peter Finch finally broke his silence. The British golf YouTuber addressed the controversial incident on Episode 152 of the Rough Cut Golf Podcast. He revealed the impossible position he found himself in during the August 2025 tournament. The drama unfolded three months before the final episode aired in November 2025.

Finch watched as Paige Spiranac approached her teammate Malosi Togisala’s ball in the thick rough. The grass was pampas-style vegetation. It stood inches high with hundreds of strands blocking the path to the green. The situation looked grim for Togisala.

Then Spiranac did something that made Finch’s heart sink. She flattened the grass in front of the ball with her hands. She cleared a path toward the green. Finch’s internal reaction was immediate.

“I’m like, ‘No, no, no, no, no, don’t.’ And I was like, ‘Oh god, someone else look, someone else look.'”

The shot that followed seemed impossible without that assistance. What should have been a sideways hack became a makeable forward shot. Togisala executed brilliantly from the rough. However, others noticed the potential violation immediately.

Dave Portnoy immediately questioned the shot from his position. “Did Paige put that on a tee for you?” he asked. Fellow influencer Peter Finch raised similar concerns from the commentary booth, stating that Paige had pressed down all the long grass in front of the ball, and there was no way Togisala could have hit that shot without that assistance.

Finch found himself in an agonizing position. He had witnessed a potential rules violation, but liked everyone on Spiranac’s team. They were friends and content partners, not just competitors. He consulted with Fat Perez and Lacy to determine the best course of action.

“I have information. The problem is first of all, I like everyone on that team. I felt a little bit ashamed… I was like, ‘Why me? Like why have I just seen that?'”

The group developed a strategy. If Spiranac’s team lost the hole anyway, the rules infraction would become an isolated incident requiring no further action. Spiranac’s team did lose the hole, which gave Finch an out. He decided to quietly inform Brad Dalke from the opposing team to keep an eye on future rough situations, explaining that he didn’t want Dalke’s team to be cheated out of a chance at winning.

However, the plan for quiet resolution failed. Francis Ellis confronted Spiranac on the green instead. Spiranac burst into tears over the allegations, walking away from other players on the green. She claimed ignorance of the rules, stating she thought she could do that and didn’t realize it was against the rules. She insisted she hadn’t improved the lie or moved the ball.

“I wasn’t trying to cheat, like I would never do that.”

The incident constituted a violation of Rule 8.1 of golf’s rulebook. This rule prohibits players from moving or bending natural objects to improve conditions affecting their stroke. The penalty in match play is a loss of a hole. Since Spiranac’s team had already lost that hole, no formal penalty was assessed. Finch immediately regretted his role in the controversy, expressing dismay at how the situation escalated.

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Influencer golf tournaments face an enforcement crisis as prize money reaches $1 million

The Internet Invitational created a unique challenge. Barstool Sports and Bob Does Sports organized a 48-player alternate-shot tournament. It was filmed with content and serious competition simultaneously. Three influencers made the enforcement decision informally, rather than using formal rules, as in professional golf. The irony ran deep. Earlier in the finals, Spiranac had questioned Francis Ellis’s competitive golf credentials. “Clearly, you’ve never played competitive golf,” she told him. Ellis fired back immediately. “This is my side gig. Oh, and by the way, we’re both in the final.”

That exchange happened before the cheating allegation surfaced. The tournament already had a contentious atmosphere. Luke Kwon had slept through his opening tee time. Portnoy imposed a five-hole penalty. Drama seemed inevitable from the start. Brad Dalke, Francis Ellis, and Cody “Beef” Franke ultimately won the championship and split the $1 million prize. Tragically, Franke passed away in October 2025 at age 31 from a sudden medical issue while attending a wedding in the Dominican Republic.

The podcast revelation demonstrates a critical challenge. As influencer golf tournaments grow in stakes and scale, friendship-based enforcement may not be a sustainable approach. The golf influencer community faces a crucial question: Can they maintain the casual atmosphere that makes their content popular while ensuring the competitive integrity that severe prize money demands?