It's been a year unlike any other for golf, with the sport embroiled in legal battles, senate hearings, shock mergers and controversial changes – and that’s before even mentioning any of the on-course action.
While many fans have become sick and tired of the boardroom politics dominating the sport's airwaves, it hasn't all been doom and gloom.
So, as the year draws to a close, let's take a look at some of the funniest, most viral and light-hearted moments that got people talking on social media this past year.
Rory and Reed's tee throwing incident
What better way to kick off the year than Patrick Reed and Rory McIlroy having a dispute on the range at the Dubai Desert Classic?
Reed labelled the Northern Irishman an "immature little child" for not talking to him at the range, with McIlroy saying he wasn't really in the mood after he had been issued with a subpoena by Reed's lawyer on Christmas Eve just a few weeks prior.
Footage emerged of the incident, including Reed tossing a 4Aces GC LIV Golf tee in McIlroy's direction. Quite the storm in a teacup.
Apparent footage of the Rory Reed tee 'throwing' incident. Thoughts? pic.twitter.com/r35kjE6hO8January 25, 2023
On the course, it was a tournament that had it all. McIlroy eventually birdied the first extra hole to beat Reed in a playoff.
Green Etiquette debate
Not even a run-of-the-mill women's college golf event is safe from social media investigators, especially when it involves a competitor walking through a player's line during the ball's path to the hole.
The controversial clip from the Darius Rucker Intercollegiate event in late February - featuring a Louisiana State University golfer's putt - set social media alight, with some fans defending the athlete and others furious at the bad etiquette.
What do you think? Remind yourself of the viral clip...
Walking in someone’s sight line while ball in motion…. Lifetime Ban, Play On, or Pouch of Misery? @BigRandyNLU @ngschuNLU @TronCarterNLU @NoLayingUp @DJPie pic.twitter.com/CRCWXiFVEoFebruary 27, 2023
Kurt Kitayama's ball mark
In March, Kitayama claimed a huge win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational and it was the final sequence that got everyone talking. Needing to two-putt from 47ft to win his first-ever PGA Tour event, the American's ball stopped agonisingly short of the hole to leave him a literal tap-in to win.
However, Kitayama wanted his tap-in to be the final shot of the tournament and opted to leave his marker a mere millimetre from the whole while his playing partners finished up.
Quite the power play.
Keith Mitchell's epic club slam
One of the great audio-visual sequences from this year came in the second round at the Players as Keith Mitchell teed it up on the fifth hole. With his drive heading way right towards the water, Mitchell slammed his club down in frustration only to be greeted by the sound of the hooter announcing the suspension in play with his ball still in mid-air.
All the while, his caddie back-pedalled behind the American, awkwardly confirming to an already-seething Mitchell that his ball was indeed in the water and that he would have a one-shot penalty despite the horn going off in mid-air.
A cinematic masterpiece.
Personal Foul, *roughing the media rights* (apparently that’s why it was taken down, I was just informed) 250 yard penalty, repeat 3rd shot from point in which ball last crossed planet earth! https://t.co/Sz4UwcNLSe pic.twitter.com/SNKEOdon11March 12, 2023
Will Zalatoris' putting stroke
Will Zalatoris endured a tough year, missing a large part of the season having undergone back surgery. He has since returned to competition - albeit finishing last at the Hero World Challenge - but the American still left us with plenty to talk about during the early part of the year.
That is, of course, thanks to his less-than-conventional putting stroke, which has left fans amazed on more than one occasion. Here's just one of the examples from the WGC-Matchplay:
omg Willy Z 🙈 pic.twitter.com/oTrGDiqd7xMarch 22, 2023
Koepka and Woodland at Augusta
Everyone loves a good bit of controversy and one moment that got people talking came at The Masters when Brooks Koepka, Gary Woodland and the pair's respective caddies were investigated after Koepka appeared to provide club advice to Woodland before he hit his shot.
In the end, they weren't charged with any infringements, but social media wasn't convinced.
pic.twitter.com/lSG9H8pbkRApril 6, 2023
Trees falling at Augusta
Perhaps not as light-hearted as some of the other moments on this list but certainly one that few will forget from the same tournament
During the second round of the Masters, adverse conditions and heavy wind saw huge pine trees at the par 3 16th come tumbling down. Thankfully, nobody was hurt and play was able to resume the next day but the video still makes for a startling watch, even now:
Scary moment as a tree falls at The Masterspic.twitter.com/UNzZYNGpuyApril 7, 2023
Masters TV coverage
Death, taxes and a portion of fans complain about the Masters' TV coverage. It's a yearly ritual for viewers to take offence at the Masters broadcast. While the tournament has one of the best websites and digital fan-viewing experiences in sport, the broadcast feeds given to networks have always been a little on the frustrating side, with full coverage not shown from the very 1st tee shot like other Majors.
A weather-interrupted third round was predicted but, with the leaders out on course, live coverage did not kick in until Brooks Koepka and Jon Rahm were on the 6th hole. To make matters worse, play was then called by the time the leaders had made the 7th green, meaning fans barely got to see one hole of live, full coverage of the final group. Oh, and it turned out that they had been filming and commentating on the first six holes anyway - which we then watched during the suspension of play - so why wasn't it made live?
Let's just say, it didn't go down well with fans.
Chase Koepka's LIV Adelaide Hole-In-One
LIV's marquee event in Australia wanted to bring the noise, especially with the par 3 12th - dubbed 'The Watering Hole'. Reminiscent of the 16th at the WM Phoenix Open, LIV officials were hoping for a big moment to send the fans crazy.
And thanks to Chase Koepka, they got that moment...
CHASE KOEPKA WITH THE ACE AT THE WATERING HOLE!Madness in Adelaide! #LIVGolf pic.twitter.com/m70i1PrURjApril 23, 2023
Eddie Pepperell and Richard Bland's twitter exchange
DP World Tour golfer Eddie Pepperell is a fan favorite on social media, while LIV's Richard Bland is certainly one of the game's more reserved characters. Both those things made their social media spat following LIV Adelaide all the more intriguing.
In a thread debating LIV Golf and the DP World Tour, Bland made a dig to Pepperell that he had only been on tour "for 15 minutes" compared to his 22 years, with Pepperell biting back that he won more tournaments in his "15 minutes" than Bland did in his 22 years.
In the end, peace was achieved, with Bland later apologizing and saying he regretted tweeting while "under the influence" of alcohol. The Cleeks GC LIV golfer then deleted his account.
Bee swarm at the Mexico Open
In April, a bizarre situation arose when Francisco Molinari, Erik van Rooyen and Chez Reavie were forced to hit the deck to avoid a swarm of bees during the Mexico Open.
It confused the commentators at first but certainly made for a rather funny visual:
Tom Kim caked in mud
Tom Kim is a likeable figure on Tour. Therefore, it was all the more funny when he became caked in mud during his PGA Championship first round.
The Korean star found the water, or the 'native area' as it's called, off the tee on the 6th hole and seemed to go in to check out the state of his golf ball. He emerged covered in mud, likely after sinking into the creek, before heading back in to clean his legs and feet that were well and truly caked in mud and grime from the creek.
Tom Kim 🤣🤣🤣 pic.twitter.com/dHYg71JapkMay 19, 2023
Michael Block's hole-in-one
Quite frankly, you could dedicate this entire list to the absurd year of club pro Michael Block, who made waves when he finished T15 at the PGA Championship. His standout moment came in the final round when - playing alongside McIlroy - the 47-year-old made a slam dunk hole-in-one at the 15th hole.
You've seen it plenty of times already, but it's worth another watch:
🚨🚨🚨 MICHAEL BLOCK JUST MADE A HOLE-IN-ONE pic.twitter.com/ljYHKN02N5May 21, 2023
Blockie's bold claims
It's back-to-back mentions for everybody's favorite club pro. Block was back in the headlines in the immediate aftermath of the PGA Championship, raising plenty of eyebrows when he boldly claimed he'd be "one of the best players in the world" with Rory McIlroy’s length.
The American later clarified the comments, claiming they were taken out of context, but social media certainly had its fun in the meantime.
Rose Zhang wins on debut
One of the feel-good stories of 2023 came via Rose Zhang, who became the first player to win an LPGA Tour event on professional debut since 1951 when she captured the Mizuho Americas Open in June.
Social media was ablaze after the stunning victory, with fellow Stanford alumnus Tiger Woods congratulating the young American on her historic victory.
Adam Hadwin's takedown
Nick Taylor sinking a 72-foot putt to become the first homegrown winner of the Canadian Open in 69 years was a great story in and of itself. But it got better moments after, as fellow pro and Canadian Adam Hadwin stormed onto the green to congratulate his countryman, only to find himself hilariously tackled to the ground by a security guard who mistook him for fan.
This one's definitely worth another watch:
Security is TOIGHT at the Canadian Open 😩 pic.twitter.com/6cS38bQiYkJune 11, 2023
Gordon Sargent's remarkable missed putt
The young American won low amateur honors at the US Open this summer but was left bemused - along with those watching along - after a short tap-in putt jumped out of the hole on the 18th at Los Angeles Country Club.
It was eventually found that the liner had been slightly damaged due to the pin being pulled incorrectly and was rectified soon after. Not that that helped Sargent at all.
WHAT? HOW?! pic.twitter.com/fS2BNMRnXiJune 18, 2023
Rose Zhang's tee trick shot
Zhang also makes the list for the second time for her viral clip at the US Women's Open back in July when the young American produced a near-impossible and most likely accidental trick shot on the par-3 7th during a practice round.
Having struck her tee shot close, Zhang also managed somehow to get her tee to flip up and land in her back pocket above her yardage book. The feat was captured by her equipment sponsor Callaway and subsequently sent fans wild on social media.
The flashmob at LIV London
LIV's slogan of ‘Golf but Louder’ certainly lived up to its reputation at its London event in July after a one-of-a-kind spectacle saw several dancers take to the first tee to perform a routine in front of the crowds.
Let's just say it got mixed reactions from fans online but it is certainly something that will stick long in the memory and got people talking.
Flash Mob breaks out on first tee before start of #LIVGolf London pic.twitter.com/RVmXpB9S9gJuly 7, 2023
Bryson DeChambeau's 58
The American had been laying relatively low since his move to LIV but reminded everyone of his brilliance when he shot a miraculous 58 en route to winning the Greenbrier event.
The 58 was the first in LIV Golf history and beat the previous low score record of 61, which was held by Branden Grace, Matthew Wolff and DeChambeau himself. And social media was certainly impressed.
Jon Rahm's toilet request
As the FedEx Cup playoffs ramped up in late summer, much of the talk was about the life-changing amounts of money on offer.
Jon Rahm - at least then - said he wasn't concerned about money but, instead, had just one change he wanted to see on Tour...more toilets.
“I can tell you right now my priorities are a lot lower than what a lot of people would think, I know this is going to sound very stupid, but as simple as having a freaking Porta-Potty on every hole," said Rahm.
Every other pro golfer: "bigger purses would be pretty nice"Jon Rahm: pic.twitter.com/2xgvHVdiPyAugust 8, 2023
"I know it sounds crazy, but I can’t choose when I have to go to the bathroom. I’ve told the Tour this many times, as simple as that.”
His request was ultimately heard as later in the year, the PGA Tour announced a number of tournament improvements, including an increase of loos on course. Not that the LIV-bound Spaniard will be able to see them in all their glory next year.
Ryder Cup 'HatGate'
The story that sparked the Ryder Cup into life after reports emerged that Patrick Cantlay had refused to wear a cap in protest at the fact players aren't paid for competing in the matchplay competition. He denied those reports, it has to be said.
Not only did it send social media into a frenzy, it also inspired a wave of chants from those in Rome, poking fun at the American for his hat-less look:
“Hats off to your bank account,” fans sing to Patrick Cantlay walking down the 16th #RyderCup pic.twitter.com/0lromGEtTmSeptember 30, 2023
Later on the second day, the tensions boiled over as Cantlay's caddie Joe LeCava became embroiled in a heated exchange with McIlroy after over-celebrating in front of the European fans.
All that fuss over one (lack of) hat.
Ryder Cup fan takes a dip
It didn't take long for the celebrations to start after after Tommy Fleetwood secured the winning Ryder Cup point at Marco Simone. The Englishman embraced the fans and his caddie, while Shane Lowry cut a jubilant figure as he strutted down the 18th fairway.
The crowds were sent wild, including one European fan who let the moment get to him, storming the green and launching himself into the pond...or at least attempting to.
We got a loose one pic.twitter.com/bQQdGeba10October 1, 2023
Joost Luiten loses his cool...and three clubs
Everyone's got annoyed at some point on the golf course. But not everyone has lost three clubs in the process.
Step forward DP World Tour pro Joost Luiten who accidentally threw his driver into a tree while venting some anger in the final round of the DP World Tour Championship. The club remained stuck and, in the effort to rescue it, the Dutchman lost two more clubs which also got stuck in the tree.
When it's not your day, it's not your day!
Taking tree trouble to the next level 🌳@joostluiten threw his driver into a tree and then loses two more clubs trying to retrieve it! #DPWTC | #RolexSeries pic.twitter.com/uOqUmPyxZmNovember 19, 2023
Rory's back on social media
The rollback of the golf ball may have divided people but it certainly was good for one thing: bringing Rory McIlroy back to social media for the first time since 2017.
The Northern Irishman issued an impassioned defence of the governing bodies' decision, began replying to fans and even had time to fire a not-so-subtle dig at ousted Ryder Cup captain Henrik Stenson to end the year:
The best thing to happen to the 2023 Euro Ryder cup team was Henrik going to LIV!December 9, 2023
