Patrick Reed trolled by LIV Golf teammate over controversial playing style

Harold Varner III couldn't resist a playful jab at his LIV Golf teammate Patrick Reed, known for his leisurely pace on the course.

Reed, who has faced criticism throughout his career for slow play and was reportedly fined by the PGA Tour before jumping ship to LIV Golf in 2022, became the butt of the joke in Varner's lighthearted social media video.

Teaming up with Reed, Dustin Johnson, and Pat Perez at 4Aces GC, Varner seized the moment to tease the former Masters champ. He posted: "Tag a friend that takes forever, I'll start @PReedGolf." In the video, he added: Golf tip of the week. This one is for Patrick Reed. Be ready to hit. Don't take forever."

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While Varner's dig was all in good fun, the issue of Reed's pace has seriously irked others in the past. At last year's Masters, Tyrrell Hatton was visibly frustrated after being held up by Reed, Sungjae Im, and Kurt Kitayama.

He said afterwards: "The lads in front have been so slow. It's pretty poor from the officials that it took 32 holes to put them on the clock. Yesterday they lost a hole and a half, they weren't any better even this morning and then for the second round they were just brutal.

"[It was] fine for them; they're not waiting on any shot that they hit. But for us, we stood in the fairway, we stood on the tee. It was really hard to get a rhythm, so it was disappointing that it took 32 holes for an official to go: 'Oh, we've put the group in front on the clock'."

Reed remains suspended from the PGA Tour due to his ties to LIV Golf, but he is still eligible to participate in DP World Tour events. Following the conclusion of the Saudi-backed breakaway league's season, the Texas-born major champion competed in the Spanish Open and the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.

"I have always loved coming over, playing on the European Tour and showing my support," Reed said last year. "I took pride in being the one American who always came over consistently. Hopefully, everything will work out and I can get back to doing that."