PGA’s Jordan Spieth Slams Sports Gambling Rowdiness Despite FanDuel Deal

By GEORGE WILLISIs Jordan Spieth a hypocrite or a realist? That’s the question echoing across the golf world.The popular golfer and past Masters champion found himself at the center of a social media firestorm after suggesting that the meteoric rise of sports betting is behind the increasing rowdiness of PGA Tour crowds and will need to be addressed.Speaking while preparing to compete in this weekend’s John Deere Classic, Mr. Spieth blamed much of the heckling Wyndham Clark received during the recent U.S. Open at Shinnecock on those who may have wagered on final round contender Scottie Scheffler or someone else to win.“I do think that betting in golf is something that’s going to have to be tackled here soon,” he said. “I don’t know how much of the Wyndham scenario was the fact that it was enticing to bet the field verse Wyndham on Sunday in a legalized betting state, and you could have had people out there that essentially have $100 to $10,000, depending on who it is, on the field versus somebody else.”Mr. Spieth went on to say that unlike other sports, fans can possibly impact outcomes with outbursts during swings or saying something that might alter a player’s focus and emotions. “In golf, it’s tricky because you could actually impact the outcome if you wanted to,” Mr. Spieth said, adding, “I don’t know of another sport that you could impact as a fan like you can golf.”On the surface, his comments make sense, especially in this era where the popularity of sports betting is skyrocketing to unprecedented levels and fan behavior at major golf tournaments has bordered on abusive.But social media sleuths were quick to label Mr. Spieth a hypocrite after revealing many of his posts on X were advertisements for FanDuel, a major sports gambling platform. Mr. Spieth, a three-time major champion, signed a multi-year exclusive partnership with FanDuel Group in January, making FanDuel his exclusive sports betting and daily fantasy provider.He is featured in national television commercials and serves as the face of FanDuel’s golf products. In turn, FanDuel supports the Jordan Spieth Family Foundation. FanDuel is also the official sports betting partner of the PGA Tour.“The dude is literally on their payroll, helping fuel this problem,” one social media poster wrote. Another posted, “Bro is sponsored by Fanduel. This is an insane take. Shut up.”Mr. Spieth seemed to have no problem with sports betting when his multi-year agreement with FanDuel was announced in January.“As the world of legal sports betting grows rapidly in the U.S., I am incredibly excited about what is happening in the space and the potential it has to bring new fans to the sport of golf,” Mr. Spieth said. “As the PGA Tour and others in the golf world have strongly embraced legalized sports gaming, I look forward to working with FanDuel to find unique ways to engage the fast-growing fanbase.”Some of those new fans have been behaving poorly. The incidents of unruliness has been in the golf spotlight since the Ryder Cup Matches at Bethpage Black last September where crowds abused the European Team. More recently, Matthew Fitzpatrick of England was heckled on his way to defeating Mr. Scheffler at the RBC Heritage.“I’ve also played rounds with guys who were not treated well 10, 15 years ago,” Mr. Spieth said. “I don’t think it’s a crazy new thing, but I will say that from what I’ve seen, a lot of times it has to do with betting, and that is in the last five years.”Mr. Spieth’s message may be compromised by his own corporate ties, but his warning remains an uncomfortable truth. The PGA Tour cannot treat its galleries like a casino and expect them to still behave like a country club.

PGA’s Jordan Spieth Slams Sports Gambling Rowdiness Despite FanDuel Deal

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