Patrick Reed ‘a hated sportsman’

• Patrick Reed ‘one of the world’s most hated sportsmen’
• The Telegraph has the American on its ten-man list
• Is listed alongside Tyson Fury, Justin Gatlin and Nick Kyrgios

Is Patrick Reed one of the world’s ten most hated sportsmen? Well, according to The Telegraph he is.

The 25-year-old was named alongside the likes of Tyson Fury, athletics drug cheat Justin Gatlin and tennis bad-boy Nick Kyrgios on the list, citing his role as Ryder Cup pantomime villain as one of the main reasons.

Reed was brash at Gleneagles but backed that up with his performance over the three days, going unbeaten with 3.5 points from a possible four. And by then, the American’s self-confidence was already evident after he declared himself a ‘top five player in the world’ following his win at the 2014 WGC-Cadillac Championship – which remains to date the biggest win of his career.

The article also cites an expletive-laden rant at himself, yes, himself, which included a homophobic slur at the 2014 WGC-HSBC Champions, for which he apologised immediately afterwards, tweeting: “I’m sorry for using offensive language today in China. My passion to play well got the best of me and my word choice was unacceptable.”

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Therefore, it seems incredibly harsh to land Reed in this bracket, especially when compared to those listed above and jockey Kieren Fallon – who was given an 18-month ban for taking a banned substance – rugby league player Gareth Hock – who was banned for two years for cocaine use – and also the likes of cricketer David Warner, rugby union star Quade Cooper, Portuguese footballer Pepe and Formula One driver Pastor Maldonado.

The American took up membership of the European Tour this year, something very few of his highly ranked compatriots have chosen to do, and has let his golf do the talking with top ten finishes in his last four starts, including his runner-up finish at the BMW Masters.

And he’s loving life playing both tours too, as shown by some of these tweets:

Patrick Reed :: Hated?

Do you agree that the American is one of the most hated sportsmen in the world? Leave your thoughts in the ‘Comments’ section below.