Ian Poulter taunts PGA Tour star over failed attempts to join LIV Golf
Ian Poulter has hinted that Billy Horschel tried and failed to join LIV Golf after being called out by the American for exaggerating his swing speed.
Poulter, 47, made the claims after taking umbrage with some research shared on social media about the longest golf balls on the market. After robot testing 46 golf ball models with a high swing speed driver set at 115mph, they found a 19-yard difference between the longest and shortest.
Those distances ranged from 348 to 343 yards within the top ten, with just five yards separating the upper tier. However, Poulter found their findings laughable, making his feelings known on social media after comparing the result to his own experiences.
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"This is so funny," he posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, in reply to a graphic displaying the findings. My swing speed is 115mph (and) I carry it 290-295 yards.
"So unless these yardages are set from landing on a runway or up Mount Everest, they’re all wrong. All numbers given should be carry, and also launch conditions need to be stated."
The report shared by MyGolfSpy on their website states the environmental conditions. Average temperatures were around 40°C in Scottsdale, Arizona, when the testing took place in mid-July, with wind speeds of about 5mph and no more than 10mph.
Billy Horschel highlighted Poulter's social media exaggeration (Getty Images)However, Horschel took issue with the swing speed Poulter was claiming to possess. "So you are one of those guys that exaggerate their club head speed," the American replied on X.
He then attached two screenshots from the PGA Tour website showing Poulter's average club head speeds from the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons. The attached images show the former world number five had average speeds of 110 during those periods.
"Merry Christmas, Poults," is how Horschel signed off the message. In response, Poulter did concede that there was some embellishing on his part in the initial post. "It’s alright, Billy, I’m normally OK with numbers," his reply reads, acknowledging the 5mph disparity between his claims and the data.
"So I got it wrong by about $9 million per mph difference that you asked for to come join LIV. What’s a few numbers between friends?" Rudimentary calculations suggest Poulter believes Horschel was looking for a fee of $45 million to join his friend in the breakaway league.
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The American was one of the most ardent LIV critics last year, describing the defectors as "brainwashed," "hypocrites and liars." Before Poulter hit back, Horschel moved to diffuse the situation.
"Man, the hate on Twitter is crazy," he posted on X. "Hate towards Poults and hate (coming) my way. I’m having a poke at a buddy. People need to chill a bit. It’s the holiday season. Let’s all enjoy this time of year." The former FedEx Cup champion has not replied to Poulter's claims regarding LIV since he made them.
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