Should Colt Knost stay an amateur? That’s the hot topic in golf right now. Despite 199 PGA Tour starts, Knost hasn’t claimed a win—but his experience makes many question if it’s fair for him to compete as an amateur. The debate’s heating up, with Nick O’Hern and Mark Allen weighing in on whether he should be allowed back in the amateur ranks.

They hosted another episode of the Talk Birdie To Me podcast, partnering with Titleist on YouTube. During one of the segments, they were reading questions from the fans when one of them had asked them to she their views on Colt Knost wanting to become an amateur again. O’Hern gave a brief introduction to Knost for Allen and also complimented the retired pro on his mic skills. But then, he dove straight into the topic.

O’Hern told Allen, “I have a feeling he has done it because there’s an event over there called the U.S. Mid-Am. I think the winner gets into the Masters. There’s been an issue with certain pros becoming amateurs, and they’ve got a chance to go to the Masters again. Now, Colt, I’m not sure if he’s done it to highlight that he’s going to be the favorite going into this tournament because he’s a proven Tour winner, and that they need to change the rule of either giving them a Masters invite or just making it for amateurs only and pros shouldn’t be able to go back to being an amateur.”

Like Colt Knost, Nick O’Hern has also not won a single PGA Tour event. So he understands why the golf commentator would want to try his luck in the Mid-Am. Especially if he can earn a ticket to Augusta National in the future. Knost is only 40 years old. Many pros are still in their prime during this age. If he can give golf another shot, even if it is through the amateur level, then he should. Especially as long as the rules allow it. And if the PGA has a problem with this, then they should regulate the issue.

Listening to the suggestion, Allen stated, “I reckon, if you were a professional of note, I’d be surprised if you went back and got your amateur status. I don’t want to win Club Championships. I don’t want to play for Victoria again. I don’t want to play for Australia. I’ve got no interest at all.” He strongly believes that any pro player shouldn’t want to return to amateur status or play at a club level. Especially after everything they have experienced on the PGA Tour.

But when it comes to Colt Knost, Nick O’Hern believes the issue is not that simple: “I think he might have been trying to prove a point to the governing bodies. I don’t know. He’s one of those guys who would do something like that just to stir up a bit of comments, which is great.” After watching the U.S. Mid-Am quarter-finals raided by former professionals, Knost must have been trying to stir up the conversation to bring attention to the issue.

After all, with so many pros turning amateurs recently, it has become a bit of a concern. The USGA should certainly be discussing how to deal with it as a priority. Having said that, while Colt Knost was trying to get the attention of the governing bodies, another individual tried to farm some views by latching on to him. Let’s see how one controversial statement turned into a messy situation between two other individuals.

Colt Knost’s statement creates conflict between two others from the golf community

After Colt Knost stated he wanted to turn amateur again, another individual tried to join in an attempt to gain attention. Suspended PGA Tour pro who is now venturing in LIV Golf’s International Series, Wesley Bryan, commented, “I think I should try and get my amateur status back 👀,” under Knost’s post. That made Shotgun Start’s Brendan Porath accuse him of his attention-seeking behavior.

Bryan was infuriated by Porath’s statement about him. He lashed out at the analyst by saying, “I have a few comments….here me out 1) fried egg and similar outlets use other people’s ideas and content to have something to talk or give an opinion on 2) they have to say things to drive clicks and attention or else they will go out of business.” Neither of them gained anything out of confronting each other in the end. It only turned into an ugly mess. If talking about it makes the situation so ugly, we wonder how bad things would get if Colt Knost actually becomes an amateur player.