Presidents Cup
Paul Tesori says U.S. players 'emphatically got personal' with Tom Kim and cursed at him during the Presidents Cup
Harry How
Two weeks after a rather chippy Presidents Cup, Paul Tesori has come to Tom Kim's defense regarding allegations that Team USA players cursed at the 22-year-old South Korean during the Presidents Cup. But the veteran caddie also wishes his player had handled the situation differently in the aftermath.
Tesori appeared on SiriusXM PGA Tour Radio with hosts Brian Crowell and Frank Darby on Sunday and talked about tensions flaring at Royal Montreal to the point of bad sportsmanship.
"I witnessed three scenarios where members of the U.S. team emphatically got personal with Tom, and, yes, you know, cursed at him," Tesori said. "And at the end of the day, no one wants that."
Tesori didn't name names, but added, "These two guys that had done it, I don't think that's in their character at all." Kim wasn't the only International player to call out the Americans. Ben An called out Wyndham Clark for 'sh--' play and behavior in a tweet that was deleted.
Some will say that, of course, Tesori is going to defend his player no matter what happened. But Tesori is also one of the most respected caddies on tour. And he also provided constructive criticism for Kim during the interview.
More on that in a bit, but first, a reminder of what happened. Kim's claim on Saturday evening at the Presidents Cup that American players cursed at him during his match drew plenty of attention. The following day, Kim said he sought out Xander Schauffele and U.S. captain Jim Furyk to clear the air after his final match on Sunday during Team USA's latest lopsided victory in the biennial competition.
"I just told him [Schauffele] like, hey, I didn't mean it to go in such a negative way," Kim said. "If it did, I just said I'm sorry. It was just I felt like what I heard yesterday, some comments that I've heard was at that time, just coming off the green, it came to me so personally and just I felt like it was right to share."
Tesori says the incidents got him worked up as well.
"One of them I witnessed a foot away from me, and the feelings I had inside were very New York Bethpage-y," Tesori said. "I wanted to react physically, and I was upset by what had happened. But at the end of the day, I also know the character of the person that this happened I don't believe is that way, and Tom handled it really well."
But that's where Tesori disagreed with his boss.
"Now, there's no reason for him to go in the media and we know in the world we live in now, even if there was video proof of what happened, half the world is going to think he's being a baby and the other half is going to think he's viable," Tesori said.
Here's the full clip:
Tesori noted that Golf Channel's Rex Hoggard backed up Kim's claims that Saturday night, "But yet nobody pays attention to that."
"It's only two of the 24 guys who acted in a way that I'd be embarrassed to act, but Tom has to have thick skin," Tesori addes. "And at the end of the day, you can't go to the media and pronounce that, you have to go talk to your captains about it, talk to your teammates about it, and it's a learning experience for Tom."
