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‘He’s a Cheater’: Fans Rip Apart Wyndham Clark as Controversial Visuals Arise From THE PLAYERS Championship

Published 03/18/2024, 1:30 PM EDT

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USA Today via Reuters

For the second week in a row, Wyndham Clark faces accusations of cheating from the fans. A video from the TPC Sawgrass, during the final round, shows the reigning US Open winner taking a sidestep while going for the 12th hole. Clark was granted a free drop, but his approach to taking the drop led many to believe he was looking to gain an advantage.

Many felt Clark was trying to gain an advantage by stomping on the ground where he wanted to take his drop. This led to scrutiny from the fans who levied cheating accusations at the player. At THE PLAYERS Championship, a lot of stars found themselves at the center of attention, such as Doug Ghim and Scottie Scheffler. The aforementioned stars garnered positive attention Scheffler became the first golfer in the history of the event to defend his title and Ghim found his “better than most” moment. But it was Clark who garnered attention for all the wrong reasons.

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Clark’s approach to THE PLAYERS was perfect; following consecutive birdies on the 16th and 17th holes, he anticipated that the putt would find its mark. However, even if that putt seemed perfect, the ball caught the hole’s left side and began to sink, but unexpectedly the ball popped out of the cup, following a horseshoe trajectory. Following the incident, Clark himself was surprised and said, “I don’t know how that putt doesn’t go in.”

This left him one shot shy of Scottie Scheffler and a shot at the $4.5 million paycheck. But fans were only reminded of what went down at the Arnold Palmer Invitational only a week ago.

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During the previous PGA Tour event, there was speculation that Clark might be cheating when the ball appeared to move slightly on the 18th hole. Once again, due to this incident, the pro finds himself facing a similar fate, with fans lashing out against him and labeling him as a cheater.

“Every tournament,” Fans unhappy with Wyndham Clark’s drop?

After the video of Clark’s drop went viral on social media, fans didn’t go easy on him. A lot of people straight-up pointed out that he was trying to gain some advantage with the drop.

Bringing out the context that this is the second time in two weeks that Clark has been accused of cheating, one fan highlighted that in every tournament the pro does something questionable.

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During the third round of the Arnold Palmer Invitational last week Clark’s actions attracted attention. While setting his shot up from the heavy rough on Bay Hill’s 18th, Clark was seen pressing his club down forcefully behind the ball, causing it to possibly move, on the broadcast. Officials reviewed it in the scoring area following the round and determined that Clark shouldn’t be penalized. However, fans were adamant about him trying to gain an advantage.

Following the incident at the PLAYERS Championship, a fan labeled him as a “cheater.”

This incident reminded one fan of the infamous Patrick Reed incident from last year. Reed was removed from Georgia’s team when he was an amateur because he allegedly hit a tee shot deep in the rough, found a different ball closer to the fairway, and played that as his own. Maybe the fan wants a similar punishment for Clark.

Following the incident at the Arnold Palmer Invitational, Clark had brushed aside cheating allegations and said, “I’m not cheating or anything like that or trying to improve my lie,’ he said. ‘Obviously, they zoom it and it makes it look worse.” But this time he will have a hard time convincing this fan who speculated that the drop at PLAYERS Championship was intentional and that the pro was trying to gain an advantage.

Clark’s agonizing finish as the joint runner-up after shooting 3-under 69 might draw some sympathy from golf fans, but his actions-intentional or not may have overshadowed his performance.

A fan brought up the rulebook and pointed out that it was a breach of rule 8.1 by Clark, which doesn’t allow golfers to move after taking positions.

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Clark maintained his innocence after the Palmer Invitational debacle, will he have to come out and justify his actions at the PLAYERS Championship as well? For now, fans seemed to have made up their mind and Clark will face a challenge convincing them otherwise.

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Written by:

Dakshinesh Kumar Naman

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One take at a time

Naman Kumar is a Golf Writer at EssentiallySports. An expert in analytical pieces, he never fails to awe his readers with his niche coverage of big names in the sport. He is also an expert in predictability pieces, where he explores the immediate future of players, be it through where they’ll play next or whether injuries will cause them to withdraw from an event.
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Edited by:

Riya Singhal

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