Patrick Reed's caddie banned from Presidents Cup after shoving spectator

More controversy for American as tempers boil over in Melbourne

Kessler Karain (L) waits as his player Patrick Reed prepares to putt during the third day of the Presidents Cup. AFP

Caddie Kessler Karain lines up a putt for Patrick Reed. AFP

Caddie Kessler Karain (L) shakes hands with his player Patrick Reed. AFP

Leishman and Abraham Ancer celebrate with Louis Oosthuizen after halving their match. Getty

Marc Leishman celebrates with fans after his shot on the 18th hole. Getty

Abraham Ancer of Mexico throws balls to fans on the 18th green after he and Marc Leishman of Australia halved their match against Rickie Fowler and Justin Thomas. Getty

Marc Leishman celebrates with fans. Getty

Playing Captain Tiger Woods of the United States team and assistant Captain Fred Couples during Saturday afternoon foursomes matches on day three .Getty

Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantlay of the United States team celebrate with Webb Simpson after defeating Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im of South Korea 2&1 during Saturday afternoon foursomes. Getty

Matt Kuchar and Tony Finau celebrate on the 17th green during Saturday afternoon foursomes. Getty

Matt Kuchar (R) and Tony Finau bump fists during the third day of the Presidents Cup. AFP

Adam Scott after missing a putt on the 16th. EPA

Patrick Reed was involved in more controversy in the Presidents Cup when his caddie shoved a spectator as tempers boiled over on the penultimate day.

Reed's caddie, also his brother-in-law, admitted he pushed a spectator who he said got too close to the player while bad mouthing him in Australia.

Kessler Karain has now been banned from carrying Reed's bag for the final session.

It was the second week of scrutiny for the Reed camp, following his rules violation of scooping sand out of the way in the Bahamas that led to a two-shot penalty, prompting International team opponent Cameron Smith  to brand him a cheat.

The row carried over into the biennial Presidents Cup event with sections of the crowd taunting Reed. Karain said he lost his temper after a fan swore at the American.

"As a caddie one of your jobs is to protect your player. And unlike several other sports, in golf fans can get pretty close to athletes," he said.

"We have been known for having fun with some good banter, but after hearing several fans in Australia for three days some had taken it too far, I had enough. And this gentleman was one of them.

"I got off the cart and shoved him, said a couple things, probably a few expletives. Security came and I got back in the cart and left. I don't think there's one caddie I know that could blame me."

It was just one incident on a day of high drama in Melbourne.

Justin Thomas and Rickie Fowler threw away a five-hole lead to damage Tiger Woods' hopes of captaining his team to victory in Melbourne.

The International team lead going into the final day of the event for the first time in 16 years, and had a trio of rookies to thank.

Marc Leishman and unbeaten rookie Abraham Ancer staged a remarkable rally in the foursomes, recovering from five down with eight holes to play to earn a most unlikely halve against Thomas and Fowler.

It means Internationals lead 10-8 going into Sunday singles, and a real chance to win the Presidents Cup for only the second time in its 25-year history.

“We've given ourselves a great shot to win the session tomorrow and win this cup,” said Adam Scott, who has been part of one tie and seven losses. “I think we've got to be pretty happy about that. Come out tomorrow, leave it all on the golf course."

Woods sent out Reed and Webb Simpson for the third straight time in the morning, and they made only one birdie in the four balls, losing, 5 and 3 to Hideki Matsuyama and C.T. Pan.

Even more curious was Woods, who won matches on both the first two days with Thomas, resting himself in the morning and the afternoon, and saying it was best for his team. “I trust the guys,” Woods said.

Dustin Johnson finally got the board when he and Gary Woodland beat Scott and Louis Oosthuizen in the lead match in foursomes. California rookies Xander Schauffele and Patrick Cantly rallied from 3 down by winning three straight holes and pulling away at the end over Cameron Smith and Sungjae Im.

The Americans trailed in all four morning matches at one stage and kept it close. The Internationals trailed in all four afternoon matches and returned the favour.

The biggest shock was Thomas and Fowler losing such a big lead.

“Speechless,” said Thomas, the star of this American team. “It's unacceptable for us to get a half a point. They made a couple long putts there on 15 and 16 to keep it going. We had our chances, and flat honest, just didn't execute.”

Woods and everyone else will be playing in the singles on Sunday, including Bryson DeChambeau, who has not played since Thursday.

Long thought to be a strength, the Americans have not won the singles session in the Presidents Cup since 2009. They haven't had to. Now they do.