Ryan Lavner has defended Wyndham Clark after the second round of the US Open, insisting that the criticism that he still receives from some fans does not make sense to him.
Clark has put himself in a fantastic position at the halfway stage of the third major of the year. The 32-year-old is four shots clear of the chasing pack after such an impressive performance over the first two days.
Who do you think can catch Wyndham Clark? 🤔
However, Clark may not be expecting to receive the full credit he deserves for his display so far. It is probably fair to say that the American is one of the most divisive characters on the PGA Tour.
Wyndham Clark defended as he continues to face criticism
Clark came in for criticism for his actions at both the PGA Championship and the US Open last year. Of course, he received a ban from Oakmont for causing damage in the locker room after missing the cut.
While he is one of the world’s best golfers, he is not very good at reading the room. Clark has made a number of comments over the years that have not painted him in the best light, including his first public comment on the Oakmont incident.
But some now believe that the time has come for Clark to be handed a clean slate.
Speaking on the Golf Channel Podcast, Ryan Lavner suggested that those not giving Clark a break are likely the same people that call for more characters on the PGA Tour.
“He’s a complex, layered character, and what has been sort of the knock on PGA Tour players ever since the LIV divide? They took some of the villains and the players that the fans love to hate. They took them away on that circuit,” he said.
“The criticism of the tour has been, these guys are all vanilla. They have no personality. And now that we actually have one, now that we have a player who has some friction, that engenders some sort of emotions, all of a sudden, now, we don’t want those players on the PGA Tour? We don’t want them competing for major championships? It’s all very confusing to me. I don’t like it, I don’t want to be a part of it.”
The impressive answer Wyndham Clark gave when asked about Oakmont at this year’s US Open
While Lavner is right that some of the criticism has gone too far, there is an argument that Clark did not help himself with some of the comments that he made after the US Open 12 months ago.
It was some time before he addressed the incident publicly. And he went on to call for everyone to move on as his focus was trying to make the Ryder Cup team.
He arguably gave a much better answer on Friday after his second round at Shinnecock Hills when he was asked about how he felt the fans’ perception of him has changed since the events at Oakmont.
“Yeah, I’ve gotten a lot of grief since last year, rightfully so. The thing that’s unfortunate is that’s not who I am, what happened last year,” he said.
“I’m hoping I can win back the fans that I had or some new fans because it was a terrible incident. You know, I really feel like I can show people that I’m fun and outgoing, I’m fierce, competitive, love the game, respect the game, and I just had a bad moment. Hopefully I can win those people back.
“Yeah, I definitely feel like I’m in a better place. Hopefully a great weekend and great rest of the year, maybe I’ll gain all those fans back.”
There is definitely a place in golf for a pantomime villain; a player that everyone loves to hate. Clark is arguably perfect for that role, as he showed at the Canadian Open by wearing an American ice hockey jersey.
If he embraces that, fans will start to warm to him again. But Clark’s issue has arguably been not realising that he is not the one who gets to decide when everyone moves on.
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