LIV Golfer Harold Varner III was asked to leave a course days before the circuit’s season finale, according to the club. However, some of the claims are disputed by the player.
Varner is playing at LIV Golf Indianapolis at The Club at Chatham Hills this week. However, according to Bear Slide Golf Club, a public course in Indiana, two days before the start of the season finale, he and his group were asked to leave following a dispute concerning group sizes.
The club has issued a statement on its Facebook page that claims the dispute arose when OKGC player Varner III, who had a foursome booked at the course, arrived at the club as one of a group of six golfers.
The statement explains that the club was prepared to accommodate the extra numbers, but only going off as two threesomes, rather than the group’s preference for playing as a six.
The statement begins: “We'd like to address a recent social media post regarding a professional golfer being asked to leave our course.
“On August 18th, Harold Varner III had a foursome booked on the tee sheet. When they arrived they were 30 minutes late for their tee time and brought 6 total golfers.
“We accommodated the additional group and they were informed they could go off as 2 threesomes.
"At the first tee, they insisted that they should be allowed to play as a 6-some. The starter informed them again that is not allowed.”
Despite being made aware of the club’s stance, the statement explains that the group was persistent, adding: “After asking the starter 4 more times, one of the group members told the starter that he was being rude and needed to calm down.
“Another person from the group defended the starter, saying that he wasn't being rude and was just enforcing the rules.
“Then, Mr. Varner again asked the starter if they could play as a 6-some. The starter said no, but that they could ask the pro shop if they would like.
“Mr. Varner asked the pro shop 3 separate times if they could play with a large group, to which he was informed that is not allowed, especially when there is play behind them.”
With the issue apparently settled, the two threesomes groups teed off, but, as the statement explains, that wasn’t the end of it.
It continued: “The groups then teed off as 2 threesomes, and continued playing this way on holes 1-3. When they got to the par 3 4th hole, away from the clubhouse, they joined together.
“One of the members of the group said they were just watching the group in front tee off, which was completely untrue. Our staff watched all 6 tee off and putt out together.”
According to the club, that was the final straw, with the statement adding: “After leaving 4 green, the group was informed that they needed to bring their carts back to the parking lot.
“They were told that they would be refunded but that they were no longer welcome on the course. At no time were they ever told to ‘Get the hell off the course.’ All of them received the refunds."
It added: “Regarding the claim that there was nobody behind them, this is again completely untrue. There was a group on the 4th tee waiting on them, another group of hole 3, and another 2 groups on hole 2.”
The statement concluded: “Perhaps this group felt like they should get special privileges because of who they are and the organization they belong to.
"But we believe that everyone should be treated fairly and should follow the same rules, regardless of your playing ability or connections.
“Bear Slide is committed to providing a great experience to everyone who plays our course. We only ask that a few rules are followed. Hopefully this helps clear the air!”
However, it doesn't appear the air has been cleared, at least not from Varner III's perspective.
A statement on behalf of the player has been posted on his Instagram stories, which disputes the claim the group played as a six.
It begins: "The statement posted by Bear Slide contains several inaccuracies and does not fairly represent what occurred."
It adds: "Harold and his team paid to play. Before teeing off, they asked whether they could play a 3v3 scramble. When the starter declined the request, they respected the decision and played at pace as two separate groups of three.
"The first group would complete the hole, watch the second group play into the green and then proceed to the next hole.
"At no point did the six golfers combine or play as a sixsome. There were also no groups immediately ahead of or behind them being delayed.
"At the end of the fourth hole, the starter spoke with the second group and asked everyone to leave because he believed they were attempting to combine.
"Harold's group was already heading to the next hole, and Harold was never personally approached or asked to leave. Once the message was relayed, the entire group left respectfully and without issue.
"We are sharing this only to ensure that the facts are represented accurately."
Varner III was tied for 16th at nine under after 54 holes of LIV Golf Indianapolis, the final event of the season following the cancellation of the $40m Michigan Team Championship.
