Controversial Australian golfer, Robert Allenby has revealed he continues to receive ‘hate mail’ in the wake of his selection late last year in the Presidents Cup.
Allenby was one of Greg Norman’s two Royal Melbourne ‘wildcard’ picks but it didn’t go well for Allenby who failed to secure a single point.
That led in parts to a much-publicised spat with fellow Australian Geoff Ogilvy on the Sunday evening following the conclusion to the Australian PGA Championship and a week after the Presidents Cup.
Whether Allenby should have kept his sentiments to himself or not is another matter but it seems he made public at Coolum his distaste in being placed in a number of poor spots around the Royal Melbourne course as Presidents Cup partner to Ogilvy.
The duo lost their Saturday Foursomes match 3 & 2 to the Americans Webb Simpson and Bubba Watson.
Consensus at Coolum was that Allenby had broken etiquette by criticising his teammates, with Korean Y. E. Yang “disappointed” because he “thought we were good teammates and being in a team environment, there is no one who played bad or good”.
Ogilvy stayed silent publicly, but when Allenby surged into PGA contention on Saturday, he tweeted a “Warms the heart to see Robert playing so well this week” message to the world.
It’s understood that message prompted Allenby to approach Ogilvy on Sunday night.
Witnesses said at that point Ogilvy responded by chiding him that he should take responsibility for his form rather than blaming others.
However in a very informative ‘Question and Answer’ session with Australian Golf Digest’s respected editor, Steve Keipert, Allenby discloses how he’s been forced to continue dealing with ‘hate mail’ since representing the International Team at Royal Melbourne.
Robert Allenby continues to receive 'hate mail' three months after the Presidents Cup. (Photo - www.golfbytourmiss.com)
“I’ve got hate mail up to my ears at the moment and I’m dealing with a lot of that,” said Allenby in the March edition of the magazine.
“I’ve got so much hate mail from the Presidents Cup it’s unbelievable. And they were sent early in the week of Coolum (a week later at the Australian PGA Championship), very early in the week.”
Allenby indicated he has been received mail in the post with pictures of the 17th hole at Royal Melbourne and with words “Here, Allenby, have a look at this, this is the 17th hole. You never made it. You’re a f…ing loser’.
“I’ve been receiving hate mail for the past two to three months about the Presidents Cup,” he said.
“And even before Norman picked me, I had a guy saying, ‘You’re a pr..k, Allenby’
“If Norman picks you I hope you play like s…t. Stuff like that and: ‘I can’t believe that you need to suck up to Norman’s a… over a barbeque to get in the team.
“And they’re just ongoing. All I ever do every day is go out there and try and play the best I can. I’m not a bad person. I’m not, I’m not a a….hole and I know sometimes I’m perceived as a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but when was the last time I threw a club?
“I haven’t thrown a club since I was probably 23 or 24. I haven’t broken a club since then, either.
“I might have used the F word or a bad word or something from missing a putt or hitting a bad shot, but by the time I get to the next shot it’s done and dusted. I’m over it.”
And Allenby has criticised fellow Australian and former PGA Tour player, Paul Gow over his post-Presidents Cup remarks.
Gow, who once shot a 60 to record the lowest score in Australasian Tour history, now works as a TV analyst.
“Paul Gow has said a lot things just recently about me, too, which I’m not very happy with,” said Allenby in the Australian Golf Digest piece.
“Where does he have the right to say anything bad about me? What’s he done in golf?
“I’ve won 22 times around the world. I’ve competed in six Presidents Cups. I don’t see him winning any tournaments around the world and I don’t see him playing in six Presidents Cups.
“I’ve been consistently inside the top-50 in the world my whole career. I fall out every now and then, and obviously 2011 was a bit of as struggle because I had a lot of mental things happening but I’ve been a pretty consistent player over the years.
“I’ve been one of Australia’s top players for a long, long time and even when the Adam Scotts and the Geoff Ogivlys were all playing great, too.
“I was still right up there with them. But I’ve taken a lot of hits. I’ve taken a lot of things on the chin and it’s made me a stronger person. I’m okay with it because I’m okay with myself.”
There’s no denying Robert Allenby is one of the more colourful characters in Australian golf.
And all credit to him.
As long as I’ve known Robert, and I’m going back some 20 years, he’s always worn his heart on his sleeve and I for one hope he doesn’t change.
