Harold Varner III launched a scathing attack on the media ahead of the 2023 Masters, slamming the coverage of LIV Golf and admitting he would love to prove the critics wrong at Augusta National.
The American left the PGA Tour for the breakaway circuit in August of last year, admitting it was "too good of a financial breakthrough" to pass up, but has taken exception to what he feels has been media bias against the Greg Norman-fronted venture.
Asked if he was putting more pressure on himself ahead of the Green Jacket showdown, Varner said: "Yeah, I want to play well. Everyone thinks we suck now, so I want to play great."
Addressing those he was speaking to, he added: "You all write it and I just read it. I don't pay attention. I don't know who wrote it. They have Twitter and social media. They just write. I want to play well. It's not like Space Jam where they took our talents away, so I'm super excited. I want to play well. That's why you play.
"It's always on my Twitter. They used to write nice stuff, but now it's just chaos. But I work well in chaos, so I'll be good."
Varner is part of the Bubba Watson's Range Goats, who are yet to win a LIV Golf event, and doubled down on the reasoning behind his career change.
"I think I said this a hundred times. It's the amount of money. It's generational. The way I grew up, it's important to me to take care of my family, and you can do it by just signing on the dotted line. That's why I've always played golf. I don't think many people come from my background economically. I've said that, and I'd do it again."
Varner begins his quest to silence his haters alongside Sepp Straka and K.H. Lee at 12.12pm local time (5.12pm in the UK).
