Former US Open champion Lucas Glover has explained why he took his shoes off during the final round of the 3M Open in Minnesota.
Glover removed his shoes on the tenth hole after reaching the green. He had just rolled in a ten-foot putt for birdie when he walked off the green, took off his shoes, and walked back over to the hole in his socks to retrieve his ball from the cup.
The moment led many viewers and golf pundits to speculate that Glover was protesting the growing popularity of the Aimpoint putting technique, a method for reading greens that involves players using their feet to feel the slope.
Glover posted a statement to his Instagram account to clear up the confusion. He wrote that he had worn spikes for 23 years on the PGA Tour, and that it was not long ago that players were not allowed to tap them down at all.
Glover said the previous day had been the first time he had ever received a complaint about his spikes, and that he was approached in the middle of the round by an official rather than a player. He said it was not the official's place to raise it, since he was not breaking any rules.
Spike marks and course conditions
Glover said players in the groups both in front of and behind him were also wearing metal spikes. He described the greens at 3M as bent grass, soft, and appearing to have been watered heavily, which he guessed was due to the weather forecast.
Glover said he did not care what type of spikes anyone wore, since in those conditions any spikes would cause damage. He said he did his best to tap down his marks near the hole as he was leaving the area, and repeated that players are allowed to tap down spike marks or fix a soft spike depression.
Aimpoint denial and final result
Glover said his demonstration had nothing to do with Aimpoint, adding that he had no idea how anyone reached that conclusion.
Glover opened the tournament with a 65 at TPC Twin Cities but finished outside the top 50 after carding a second-round 70 and matching scores of 72 in both the third and fourth rounds.
