Golf fans have slammed commentator Mark Roe for ‘unprofessional’ comments about Tiger Woods during the first round of The Open at Royal Troon.
Roe, who is commentating on the featured groups coverage at The Open this week, made his feelings be known about Woods while he was heading down the par-5 4th with playing partners Patrick Cantlay and Xander Schauffele.
He said after seeing Woods’ eyes, he thought he was ‘on a lot of painkillers’ (video below)
Woods, 48, is competing in just his fifth tournament of the season at the 152nd Open Championship in Scotland.
The 15-time major champion’s playing schedule has been heavily limited in 2024 as a result of undergoing ankle surgery last year.
That came two years after he nearly died in a car crash in Los Angeles.
Everyone is all too aware of Woods’ health and fitness battles through the years.
Prior to ankle surgery, Woods had a series of of back surgeries to help keep his game on track on the PGA Tour.
It’s why Woods’ memorable 2019 Masters triumph, the last of his current 15 major titles, was such an incredible achievement.
But back to the top of the story, and a large number of golf fans have been left disappointed by Roe’s comments about Woods during first round featured groups coverage at The Open.
Many consider Roe overstepped the mark.
“You look at the eyes,” said Roe.
“You gotta think there’s a lot of painkillers being taken to cope with the pain, you know?”
Here’s how a number of golf fans reacted:
An absolute crazy thing to say on air
Who is Mark Roe?
Roe, 61, is a former European Tour pro who is best remembered for a scorecard error when in third-round contention at the 2003 Open Championship at Royal St George’s.
He and his playing partner, Jesper Parnevik, failed to swap their scorecards before the round, meaning they both ended up signing for wrong scores and were consequently disqualified from The Open.
Roe now works as short game coach and commentates for Sky Sports Golf.
WATCH THE VIDEO BELOW:
Featured groups basically calling Tiger a drug addict because “you look at the eyes, you gotta think there’s a lot of painkillers being taken.” pic.twitter.com/udylWo5BsT
— Cameron Jourdan (@Cam_Jourdan) July 18, 2024
Article originally appeared on: Golfmagic.com
It is called journalism, reporting what you see. I see no problem. He did not disparage Woods, he did not imply any illegal drugs. He is sympathetic to the obvious pain Woods goes through trying to walk 4 hours. Any player wincing in pain should be reported and since we know Woods reason for the pain, longstandng injury, using aspirin or tylenol is not a wild crazy guess.