The Tipping Story Which Is It: And The Image Of Mr. Nice Guy Or Matt Kuchar El Cheapo?

MATT KUCHAR stood just inside the glass doors leading from the clubhouse of the Sea Island Golf Club to the putting green.

- John Feinstein

MATT KUCHAR stood just inside the glass doors leading from the clubhouse of the Sea Island Golf Club to the putting green.

It was a week before Christmas in Georgia, and Kuchar’s 11-year-old son, Cameron, was working his way through the putting course that snakes around the green. Kuchar’s smile could not have been wider.

“I love the fact that both my kids love to play,” he said. “I’ve never pushed them to play or to practice. When they ask me to play or go to the range, I go. But it’s their call when we go, and their call how long we stay.”

Inside the clubhouse, Kuchar’s wife, Sybi, glanced at her watch. Cameron had a dentist appointment, and Matt’s teacher, Chris O’Connell, was on his way from the airport to spend some time with him before the holidays. The Kuchars’ younger son, 9-year-old Carson, was playing tennis with Sybi’s parents.

Life in Kuchar World was hectic, but clearly happy.

“I’ve been unbelievably lucky to be able to build the life we have,” Kuchar had said earlier that morning. “This has been a perfect place for us to raise our family, and it’s been great for me as a place to play and practice when I’m not on tour. I don’t think I could ask for anything more than that.”

That was Kuchar’s public persona: the devoted family man who behaves with grace and style in victory and defeat.

But that image took a massive hit in February when Kuchar became embroiled in what was arguably the first real controversy of his career. It started the previous November with a victory—an important one. Kuchar hadn’t won on the PGA Tour in more than four years, and, having turned 40 in June, he had genuine worries about how much golf he had left.