Jordan Spieth Scolds Sports Bettors While Being Paid Millions by FanDuel

Jordan Spieth is facing backlash after the three-time major winner said something needs to be done to safeguard players from abuse from sports bettors, all the while being paid by one of the largest sportsbooks in the world.

During his media availability on Tuesday ahead of the John Deere Classic, the tournament that marked his first PGA Tour win in July 2013 in a three-way playoff, Spieth responded to a question about how Wyndham Clark was treated on Sunday at the US Open, when he was paired with Scottie Scheffler. Spieth suggested that the hostility some fans demonstrated towards Clark stems from bettors.

Betting in golf is something that’s going to have to be tackled here soon.”

Jordan Spieth

“I don’t know how much of, say, the Wyndham scenario, was the fact that it was enticing to bet the field versus Wyndham on Sunday in a legalized betting state. You had people out there who had $100 to $10,000 on the field. In golf, it’s tricky because you could actually impact the outcome, impact a shot if you wanted to,” Spieth continued.

“I don’t know of another sport that you could impact as a fan like you can in golf. From what I’ve seen, a lot of times [harassment] has to do with betting, and that is in the last five years. We’ll see what happens with that,” Spieth concluded.

Spieth Blames Bettors While Promoting Betting

Spieth’s comments on sports bettors harassing golfers quickly faced backlash, with many calling him a hypocrite. Spieth’s most recent posts on X all promote FanDuel.

In August 2021, Spieth became the first PGA Tour member to partner with FanDuel.

“When we first started discussions, I thought, ‘Man, this is pretty exciting,'” Spieth told Golf Digest during a filming for a FanDuel commercial shoot at the time.

“I think it would be foolish not to be getting involved in this, there’s so much potential,” Spieth added. “It’s going to make the PGA Tour better for us by generating more interest because it was going to happen anyway. The fact that they’re leaning all in makes us as players feel more comfortable because they’re going to figure out a way to make it a safe space for us to feel like we can do our thing. So, it just makes a lot of sense.”

Five years later, Spieth apparently has a new narrative. His fans are none too happy to hear him blame bettors for unruly patrons.

“Not the smartest answer from someone sponsored by FanDuel,” read one comment on Golf Digest’s X post of Spieth’s remarks.  

“Says the guy who’s literally sponsored by FanDuel,” read another. “Well, they definitely aren’t going to make people stop betting on golf, so I’m not sure what he thinks is going to happen or exactly what it is they are going to ‘tackle.'”

Spieth Odds

The John Deere tees off tomorrow, and Spieth is among the favorites at +3300. Ben Griffin (+1500), Chris Gotterup (+1600), and Jackson Koivun (+2000) are the front-runners.