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Mardy Fish had an unfortunate incident in the final round of the American Century Championship 2023 on Sunday, July 16, as he was distracted on the final hole by the deliberate noise made by one of the fans.
Steph Curry went on to win the American Century Championship in 2023, beating Fish by two points. While the Golden State Warriors star carded an even-par 72, Fish played a better round of 3-under 69. However, the final hole went a bit controversial when Fish fell victim to the outside disturbance.
Ahead of the 18th hole, the former US Davis Cup star was leading Curry by three points. For the uninitiated, Edgewood Tahoe South used a Stableford scoring system. In Stableford scoring, a player gets one point for par, three for birdie, and six for eagle. While no point is awarded for a bogey, two points are subtracted for a double bogey or less.
Just as Fish was about to hit a tee shot on the par-5 18th, someone from the crowd yelled 'Clown!'. Fish lost his focus, and his show went wide to the right into the fan gallery. Fish took five shots to finish the hole and had to settle for just one more point in his score.
If Fish had made a birdie in the last hole, there was a possibility of a playoff. Curry, who was trailing until the last hole, miraculously sank an eagle, resulting in a two-point victory over the six-time winner on the ATP tour.
Commentators felt it was a deliberate attempt by fans.
"It was an unfortunate situation" - Stephen Curry on the Mardy Fish incident at the American Century Championship 2023
Stephen Curry acknowledged the unfortunate incident in his post-win press conference. He said it was embarrassing for other golf fans just because of one guy who lost his sanity.
He was quoted as saying by Fox 9:
"It was an unfortunate situation. A guy trying to sabotage what was going on for a moment. Mardy is such a class act. I complimented him for the way he bounced back to give himself a chance to win.
"I felt embarrassed for all the other fans," he added. "There's so much great love from the 99.9% of the people who come into this environment. And they're so supportive and bring so much energy. You got one guy who loses his mind for a second."
How many titles has Mardy Fish won in golf?
Since retiring from tennis after the 2015 US Open, Mardy Fish has been playing regularly in golf events. He is currently regarded as one of the best celebrity golfers. The 41-year-old has won the Diamond Resorts Invitational three times (2016, 2018, and 2022). He also won the 2020 American Century Celebrity Golf Championship.
Mardy Fish also received a sponsor exemption for the 3M Open in 2022, making him the first player to compete in both ATP tour and PGA Tour events. He carded 81 and 74 in the first two rounds to miss the cut in his PGA Tour debut event.
