Golf has the capacity to render the most calm person totally mad, and that’s something which happened to one Team Europe Ryder Cup star at the Masters earlier this month
One Masters star was recently warned he risked getting a ban(Image: 2026 Augusta National)
Robert MacIntyre has admitted he was not proud of sticking his middle finger up during the Masters. The Team Europe Ryder Cup winner endured a miserable weekend at Augusta, missing the cut with a disappointing finish of seven over par, after hitting rounds of 80 and 71.
MacIntyre endured one frustrating moment after the other at Augusta, and was often heard swearing loudly to himself when he made a poor shot. But the most memorable moment of his tournament came on the 15th hole, when he stuck his middle finger up in the direction of cameras after hitting a quadruple bogey – at the end of the major, he skipped his media duties.
He was firmly reprimanded by an official at Augusta – although he was not given a code of conduct warning like Sergio Garcia – and Rory McIlroy’s former agent Andrew ‘Chubby’ believes MacIntyre risked getting himself banned. Similarly to the Spaniard, he was also seen hitting holes into the ground on the 14th and 17th holes out of frustration.
READ MORE: PGA Tour told who to reward over ‘loyalty’ with LIV Golf stars facing worst nightmareREAD MORE: LIV Golf all-time money list: Who has earned the most as Jon Rahm pockets millions
However, it has not yet been forgotten, as he was asked about his behaviour at the illustrious Georgia course. MacIntyre said: “Yeah, look, I know what I’ve done isn’t the best way of me doing things, but look, I wear my heart on my sleeve.
“I’m trying my best to control the emotions. I work with someone back home. Yeah, there’s a lot going on and disappointed with that, but I’m very good at putting things behind me. I don’t like things that get said elsewhere, that doesn’t faze me.
JOIN US ON FACEBOOK! All the best sports news and much more on our dedicated Facebook page
“I just come out here. I’ve got my family, friends and my team, these guys are the ones that I really listen to and, you know, if I’ve done something wrong, they’ll tell me.
“I do what I want to, how we want, not just personally, but with family and friends, and we go about our business the way we want to.
MacIntyre was reprimanded by an Augusta official(Image: 2026 Getty Images)
“You know some people like it, some people don’t. At the end of the day, it’s a job, and I try and come out here and perform the best I can.“
MacIntyre looks to be back in his golfing groove after hitting a round of 66 at Harbour Town, which has put him T10, just three strokes behind current leader Ludvig Aberg.
After his promising opening round, the 2025 US Open runner-up admitted he is already feeling better.
He said: “Yeah, look, coming off last week and a disappointing performance, I was comfortable with the golf course. It suits my game, I’ve been in good shape, so try to put as much of last week behind me as I could.
MacIntyre has started the RBC Heritage Classic strongly(Image: 2026 Getty Images)
“And yeah, just overall, I’m driving it well. I’m driving it beautifully off the tee. I’m being aggressive off the tee, which gives me a lot of wedges around here so, yeah.
“I didn’t take many chances in the middle part of the round which was disappointing, but five-under-par is always a good start.“
Sky Sports, HBO Max, Netflix and Disney+ with Ultimate TV package
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Sky has upgraded its Ultimate TV and Sky Sports bundle to now include HBO Max, Netflix, Disney+, discovery+ and Hayu, as well as 135 channels and full Sky coverage of the Premier League and EFL.
Sky broadcasts more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more with at least 215 live from the top flight alongside Formula 1, darts and golf.