Golfers are sounding the alarm on fan behavior. This time, it's Wyndham Clark who's echoing what a few other golfers have said.

Before this week's Open Championship at Royal Birkdale, Clark backed Jordan Spieth's theory that the rise of legalized sports b****** is fueling toxic and rowdy behavior among golf crowds.

"I think it's definitely one of the factors," Clark said, supporting Spieth's point, per The Mirror US.

Ahead of the John Deere Classic, Spieth said that b****** needed to be 'tackled here soon'. He pointed to the 'Wyndham scenario at Shinnecock' and argues that a legalized market made it tempting for fans to wager against the leader on Sunday.

"The amount of times we hear guys in tournaments saying, 'Oh, Wyndham, I have you 30-to-1 to win this week or 100-to-1, I'm b****** on you'. That happens all the time. So I do think in some instances that is definitely one of the culprits."

The Clark-Spieth exchange is the latest chapter in a story that has been building since b****** apps became part of PGA Tour galleries. And we've already seen how that has gone.

At the 2023 BMW Championship, Max Homa said a fan first shouted at Chris Kirk. Then he yelled 'Pull it!' at Homa during his backstroke on the 17th green after mentioning a $3 bet. Homa made the putt anyway, and the spectator was removed. Rory McIlroy, then a PGA Tour board member, addressed the incident as a warning sign for the sport.

Similarly, Clark also faced the toxic side of this rowdiness at the 2026 U.S. Open at Shinnecock Hills. He went into Sunday with a six-shot lead, but the crowd was clearly against him, cheering mistakes and shouting, "Don't choke, Wyndham". In the end, he still held on and beat Sam Burns by only one shot to win his second U.S. Open title.

Several spectators have been ejected from the course, the USGA later confirmed

Matt Fitzpatrick Says Ejection Isn't the Real Fix

The 2022 U.S. Open champion arrives at Royal Birkdale in top form, with three PGA Tour wins this season. But even with that momentum, the topic came up in his press conference.

"I would say every golfer that's played a professional tournament has had a message of a**** from someone that is related to g*******," Fitzpatrick said, according to the BBC.

"You go and type in a player's name who maybe isn't playing well, maybe someone who's favoured to play well, you type the name into Twitter, and you'll just see their name followed by a**** after a**** after a****. For me, it's definitely becoming a problem."

The R&A, which oversees The Open Championship, has introduced a code of conduct for spectators ahead of this week's tournament.

It is built around five principles — respecting players, respecting the course, respecting each other, staying alert, and enjoying the event responsibly. Serious or repeated breaches can get a fan removed from Royal Birkdale without a refund.

But Fitzpatrick argues that ejection only solves half the problem. A fan shouting in the gallery can be walked out the gate. But a b***** typing a**** from a couch at home can't be touched by any code of conduct.

What do you think about it? What measures should be taken to stop these problems?

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Written by

Md Saife Fida

Edited by

Siddharth Shirwadkar