Fact Check: Is Geno Auriemma’s Viral “Disrespectful” Rant on Caitlin Clark’s LPGA Appearance True?
Fact Check: Is Geno Auriemma’s Viral “Disrespectful” Rant on Caitlin Clark’s LPGA Appearance True?
“I’ll become a professional golfer,” Caitlin Clark stated about her off-season plans after the Indiana Fever was eliminated from the WNBA playoffs. Since then, the 22-year-old has been practicing hard, even took lessons from the legendary Martha Foyer Faulconer to participate in the LPGA Pro-Am. As she took to the green alongside Nelly Korda and Annika Sorenstam on Wednesday, a video has surfaced online of a balling legend disapproving of her actions.
In a viral video, the UConn Huskies head coach Geno Auriemma criticized Clark and her fans, while going as far as enunciating that it would bring disrespect to golf as a whole. On one side, it fired up the Iowa sensation’s loyalists, on the other, some on social media are also of the opinion that the video is AI-generated. So, let’s dive deep into it.
What did Geno Auriemma say?
As the generational player showed off her potential alongside Korda and Sorenstam, a widely circulated video cropped on the social media platforms. There, Auriemma seemed displeased with Clark playing golf. While Auriemma is facing backlash on the internet, the video is definitely doctored. Much of it matches one of his previous statements from June on the Dan Patrick Show. And if you want more proof of it being an AI-generated, you can catch some glitches in the video as well.
While he had commented on Clark’s “delusional” fan base and talked about her basketball skills, the same video has been tweaked to make it look as if he is talking about golf.
“If you are a basketball player, but just a recreational golfer, like Caitlin is… the delusional fan base that follows her disrespects the LPGA golfers by thinking she could go into this tournament and do anything. There are actually fans that think she can make birdies, or even pars. These people are so disrespectful and so unknowledgeable and so stupid that it gives women’s golf a bad name. So the kid is set up for failure right from the beginning,” Auriemma looked frustrated with Clark’s actions in the recent video. However, he did not stop there.
Notably, the Huskies HC was commenting on Clark’s ability to hit pars. Though the Des Moines born did miscue some shots initially, she hit a long putt at the fifth and celebrated it with a fist pump. She also had one hole, one par as she played alongside Korda and two others in the opening nine. While she might not hit a birdie, she sure has the inherent talent to polish with time.
“She’s got the wrong skillset to handle the physicality of the LPGA. She doesn’t have the short game, the distance, the accuracy. This kid’s in for a rude awakening and when they invite her to the ninth hole at 9 tonight, she and that delusional fan base will get everything that’s coming to them,” he further added.
As for her short game, the Fever No. 22 before the tournament in one of the viral clips was seen practicing it. She had also received advice on not being tense in her shoulders. Meanwhile, even fellow Iowans Zach Johnson and Ludvig Aberg had praised the now-Indiana sensation when she participated in the LPGA Pro-Am John Deere Classic last year. The 22-year-old even impressed the Caitlin Clark of golf.
“She was just really enjoying it. You can tell like she is definitely very talented. She was picking the ball really clean off, she was losing a couple of shots to the right,” Korda expounded on the ROTY’s performance. However, she did finally approve of her, pointing out that the ‘generational talent’ plays golf probably once a week.
Furthermore, talking about her participation World No. 1 mentioned that it was great for women’s sports which stands at loggerheads at what Auriemma said, if he did.
Playing for the whole month, the Des Moines-born had herself stated that she is an “average golfer” with a 16 handicap, and has scored in the mid-80s. “I’m strong, and I can hit it. It just usually doesn’t go straight,” Clark had admitted at the Women’s Leadership Summit on Tuesday. And with Auriemma accusing Clark as seen in the video, her fans blasted away the 70-year-old. As the video is AI-generated, let’s take a look at the original statements.
Geno Auriemma’s video sounds similar to his previous interview
The 11x NCAA Championship-winning head coach had shared quite similar thoughts in June at the Dan Patrick Show. When the Fever were finding it difficult to get off to a good start during her rookie season, Auriemma had come forward to opine that she was “set up for failure.” Doesn’t it sound similar to what he allegedly spoke about her today? Wait till you hear the whole statement from June.
“If you’re a college player, and a great college player like Caitlin was, the delusional fan base that follows her, disrespected the WNBA players by saying she’s gonna go in that league and tear it apart. There were actually odds on what are… like she’s third or fourth in betting odds in MVP in the WNBA. These people are so disrespectful and so unknowledgeable and so stupid that it gives women’s basketball a bad name. Okay? So the kid was set up for failure right from the beginning…. “
The Hall of Famer further dug back to the time when one of his mentees and WNBA’s veteran Diana Taurasi had commented on the first-overall pick. Then, she talked about how there are learning curves to the process of transitioning from the NCAA to the WNBA and we will have to see how Clark turns out to be. The statements were based on the fact that the WNBA is a physical league that tests rookies for their will power.
“And Diana said it best.’ This kid’s in for a rude awakening.’ And they all jumped over her but they didn’t read the whole thing that she said. But nobody’s spinning you know Diana Taurasi was right. This kid’s on the wrong team. She’s got the wrong skillset to handle the physicality of that league. And she’s a rookie,” Auriemma had said then.
We all know how Clark fared after that and how she won the ROTY. And Taurasi’s further comments on how she will prove her worth as she has at every level also stood correct.
While Clark had stated her wish to be a professional golfer in Indiana’s exit interview, on Tuesday at the Women’s Leadership Summit, the Indiana rookie clarified “I just had the quote about becoming a professional golfer. Everybody thought I was serious. I was not serious. I love it…That was a joke. I set myself up for failure!”
Meanwhile, she also doesn’t think much of her golfing prowess as she had expressed before. Once again she was vocal that she didn’t want to hit anyone and that “is my No. 1 priority,” which clearly shows that she knows she’s an amateur in this sport.
Concluding her yesterday’s press conference, the Iowa-alum expressed that she was doing it just for fun and “this isn’t super serious. Enjoy the experience.” Now, as the tournament has ended, it would be great if Clark or Auriemma himself came forward to shed more light on the video, which might calm the point guard’s loyalists.
