Former Tiger Woods coach blasts “ridiculous” Zach Johnson claim

Hank Haney, the legendary former coach of Tiger Woods, has hit out at Zach Johnson over his “ridiculous” comments about LIV golfers making his Ryder Cup team.

US captain Johnson refused to be drawn on the prospect of eligible LIV players teeing it up as part of his 12-man team in Rome during last week’s PGA Championship.

Johnson was repeatedly asked about a subject that has been drawn into sharper focus given the success of the LIV renegades in the first two majors of the season.

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Brooks Koepka currently sits inside Team USA’s qualifying spots after his fifth major victory at Oak Hill, whilst fellow LIV player Dustin Johnson finished with a perfect 5-0 record after the demolition of Europe at Whistling Straights in 2021.

But Johnson, a former Masters champion and Claret Jug winner, insisted that it is too early to consider LIV players for the biennial contest at this stage.

“I think it would be premature and almost irresponsible to even go into that. It’s not on my radar right now,” he said.

What a ridiculous quote by Zach Johnson. Brooks Koepka won the PGA and came 2nd at the Masters. They think this stupid little game they are playing is good for the game of golf? https://t.co/R2AdYzaIBW

— Hank Haney (@HankHaney) May 23, 2023

Haney, who was Woods’ swing coach for six of his 15 major wins, believes Johnson’s is hurting golf with his position that LIV players in his team has not even been a “discussion item.”

“What a ridiculous quote by Zach Johnson,” Haney tweeted in response to a headline about the skipper’s stance.

“Brooks Koepka won the PGA and came second at the Masters. They think this stupid little game they are playing is good for the game of golf?”

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Johnson also claimed after his T58 finish in Rochester that it would be “irresponsible” to attend LIV events in the build-up to the duel at the Marco Simone course.

He added: “I think the luxury of me being captain is that I’m still relevant and prevalent out on the PGA Tour and that’s where my status holds, so for me to abandon that for a week, where the bulk of my players are going to come from, would be irresponsible on my behalf and extremely inappropriate.”

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.