The fallout from the two-shot penalty that Patrick Reed received back in 2019 at the Hero World Challenge after his controversial actions lasted for months, if not years.

Rory McIlroy was handed exactly the same punishment at the Abu Dhabi Aldar Championship on Thursday this week, albeit his rule infraction came in the rough rather than a bunker.

It is ironic that McIlroy received his two-shot penalty while playing in the same group as Patrick Reed. The American was handed a two-stroke penalty by officials seven years ago at Albany Golf Club after he was deemed to have moved the sand behind his ball TWICE while taking practice swings on the 11th hole.

That was obviously a violation of the rules, although Reed strenuously denied any intention to improve his lie. However, rules official Slugger White explained at the time how intent was irrelevant to the ruling.

After the incident, Reed defended his integrity, saying: “It’s not the right word to use. At the end of the day, if you do something unintentionally that breaks the rules, it’s not considered cheating, but I wasn’t intentionally trying to improve a lie or anything like that. If I was, it would have been a really good lie, and I would have hit it really close.“

However, many of Reed’s peers did not agree with not only with his actions at the Hero World Challenge, but also with his comments after the incident. Cam Smith is someone who was particularly outspoken about the 2018 Masters champion’s remarks.

“If you make a mistake maybe once you can maybe understand, but to give a bit of a b——t response like the camera angle – I mean, that’s pretty up there,” the Australian fumed.

“I hope the crowd absolutely gives it to not only him but everyone (from team America at the Presidents Cup) next week.”

Greg Norman also weighed in on the situation, saying: “From my personal perspective, you know, I get really repulsed with that because, to me, you’ve got to protect the integrity of the game, not protect the player.

“Over the years that I’ve been involved with the sport, for 40-plus years, I’ve seen a lot of things happen and, to me, I’ve always been at the forefront of protecting the game before anybody else. I don’t care what it is, whether it is an infraction of the rules, or signing a scorecard incorrectly, or taking an illegal drop, or whatever it is that I see, I will always, always stand on the forefront of protecting the game first.”

Rory McIlroy’s reaction when Patrick Reed received penalty in 2019

McIlroy accepted his two-stroke penalty without an argument in Abu Dhabi on Thursday, saying: “Obviously there was no intent. I play by the rules. I feel like this is never really – I try to do everything that I can to never end up in these positions.

“But just by looking at the video, it doesn’t look very good. Obviously that wasn’t my intent. I’m just trying to get a feel for the lie. I don’t feel like I pressed down. But at the same time, I don’t want the perception of, like, people thinking like I got away with something either. So I’m happy to take a two-shot penalty and move on and move into tomorrow.”

And McIlroy echoed a similar sentiment in reaction to the incident involving Reed seven years ago. While there was somewhat of a mutiny against Reed, the six-time major champion shared a more balanced view.

Speaking back in December 2019, just after the incident involving Reed at Albany, McIlroy gave his honest view on the matter.

“You try to give the player the benefit of the doubt. He’s in there and he’s trying to figure out what way to play the shot and he’s moved some sand so it is a penalty. I don’t think the intent is there,“ the Northern Irishman said.

“But it’s also very hard for me to believe he didn’t feel what he was doing. It’s a hard one. I would never like to think anybody was intentionally improving their lie, but there’s an obliviousness to it, almost like it’s his pre-shot routine.

“I don’t think it would be a big deal if it wasn’t Patrick Reed. I think, it’s almost like, a lot of people within the game, it’s almost like a hobby to kick him while he’s down. If it wasn’t Patrick Reed, it wouldn’t be getting quite so much attention. It’s going to make things really difficult down in Australia for him.”

At the time, McIlroy was spot on with his last comment about the upcoming Presidents Cup in 2019.

Patrick Reed received all kinds of abuse at Royal Melbourne, and Cam Smith was actually reprimanded by the PGA Tour for inciting ill-feeling towards the American ahead of the Presidents Cup.

While the footage of Patrick Reed in the bunker certainly did not look good, there has never been any concrete evidence to prove that there was actually any intent from the American to improve his lie.

And while the two-stroke penalty handed to him was the correct decision, it is incredibly harsh for anyone to suggest that Reed cheated that day.