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Reed poses for a portrait during the Pro-Am prior to the Saudi International at the Royal Greens Golf & Country Club.

By Kent Gray
Patrick Reed spent Tuesday at the Saudi International recreating his infamous Ryder Cup “sshhh” from Gleneagles five years ago with a gaggle of excited schoolboys near Royal Greens Golf & Country Club. After doing his bit to help grow the game in the Kingdom, Wednesday was reserved for practice – and mending fractured Ryder Cup relationships in the wake last year’s tumultuous matches near Paris.

The 28-year-old Texan became public enemy No.1 in the U.S. golf after Europe’s bruising 17½-10½ win by calling out Jordan Spieth following their messy pairings divorce at Le Golf National.

Reed claimed to have been “blindsided” by the decision, which he believes Spieth forced on U.S. captain Jim Furyk. Furyk later retorted by saying Reed knew of his pairing plans well in advance but the damage was done. After going 8-1-3 together in four international teams events beginning at the 2014 Ryder Cup in Scotland, Spieth went 3-1 with Justin Thomas near Paris while Reed was 0-2 with Tiger Woods.

“Every day, I saw ‘Leave your egos at the door’. They [the Europeans] do that better than us,” Reed said in an explosive New York Times story afterwards.

Fast-forward to last week’s Farmers Insurance Open and it seems the standoff – the once formidable duo hadn’t spoken since Paris and Reed wasn’t invited to Spieth’s recent wedding – looks to be thawing. The duo hugged it out at Torrey Pines and Reed continued the reconciliation in his Saudi International preview presser.

“You know, really Jordan and I, we go way back. I grew up and I played a lot of junior golf, amateur golf, a lot of professional golf with him, and our relationship has always been a solid relationship,” Reed started.

“I think that [Sunday’s hug] was more for us just to show everyone else that, hey, what was said at Ryder Cup and the things that have gone on at Ryder Cup, it’s all in the past. We were all over it the day we got home.

“For us, it was more on just kind of showing everyone else that, hey, we’re all good, we’re fine, that everyone else should be, and we just need to try to keep on focusing and get the team ready and go on for next Ryder Cups so we can hopefully keep the Cup back in the States.”

Reed admitted having Woods as a playing captain at December’s Presidents Cup in Melbourne wouldn’t harm the revival of Team USA.

“Yeah, emotions are always going to be running high when you’re either on the losing team or the winning team. You’re either on an all-time high or all-time low, depending on what team you’re on. The guys have all talked — I mean, Tiger and I have talked,” Reed said.

“I’ve talked to probably every single player that has a chance to get on the team. On our side, we’re all good. We’re just out there — that’s all way behind us, and we’re out there just trying to play and trying to make the team because with how deep golf is these days, especially the young guys coming up that have a chance of making that team, and you’ve got to keep on grinding, keep on playing well.”

Reed’s frosty relationship with many of his peers is well-documented but Captain America feels right at home during his regular jaunts around the European Tour and credits that moment at Gleneagles for the unexpected love.

“When I shushed the crowd at Ryder Cup in 2014 at Gleneagles, from that point, ever since I’ve come over and I’ve played in events, the crowds have been unbelievable. They’ve been so supportive… normally when you shush somebody, they’re not really receptive when you come back, and they seemed to love it.”

The reigning Masters champion is in the strange position of being a supporting cast member  at Royal Greens this week given the quality of the field which includes four of the world’s top-five: Justin Rose, Brooks Koepka, Dustin Johnson and new Desert Classic champion Patrick Reed.

The world No. 15 admits he’d love start ruffling some feathers further up the official world golf rankings.

“Yeah, it would be awesome. I just need to continue down the path and grinding and putting myself in position playing on Sunday in golf tournaments.

“Rosey has done an absolutely amazing job, BK has played some great golf all last year, as well, and in order to get to that spot, you have to consistently have a chance to win golf tournaments and close out tournaments, not just once or twice a year but three, four, five times a year.

“That’s what it takes. And also it takes doing that in big events. I got a taste of one of those big events by winning at Augusta and put myself in position at the U.S. Open, and I just need to keep on putting myself in those positions and hopefully closing them off.

Reed knows it won’t be only the game’s bigger names making things tough this week. The European Golf Designs layout presents as scoreable, providing the gentle Red Sea breezes don’t play up. 

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“You know, it’s going to put a premium on ball-striking if the wind is up, and if the wind is not up, really I feel like it’s more of a premium on driving and putting because if you put wedges in guys’ hands, a poor wedge on tour nowadays is 20 feet, and you still have the opportunity of making that putt.

“But if you can play out of that short grass here and kind of keep it out of the fairway bunkers, you’re going to be able to really score and attack this golf course.”

Reed is ready and hopes the week proves as inspiring to the locals as his visit to the World Academy was yesterday.

“A passion of mine has always been to try to grow the game, and the way you’re going to do that is by helping out the younger generation, because later in life, I’m going to pass it on down to them.

“To be able to go out and hang out with the kids, especially in a place I’ve never been before, being in Saudi for the first time, it was a lot of fun. They say they don’t know a lot about golf, but when I’m over there, some of the questions they had just about sports and also golf in general, I’m sitting there going, they know a lot more than I thought.

“It was a lot of fun. I hope to actually — I might pop over there later on this week just to say hello because it was just a blast.”