So far in the 2018 Masters, leader Patrick Reed has shot 69, 66 and 67. With that being said, if you're superstitious, you may want to stop reading here, because Nike isn't allowing Reed to wear red on Sunday for the final round. Nike golfers are being mandated to wear pink for the final day at Augusta.
Now, that may not sound pearl-clutchingly bad, but here's the rub: Reed has worn red at all five of his tour wins to this point in his career. He is yet to wear it at this Masters, as golfers were required to wear "either dark blue or gray, grayish black" on Thursday and Friday and "the same color" Saturday and Sunday, Reed told Golf.com on Friday.
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Should Reed shoot under 70 on Sunday, he would be the first golfer in history to shoot in the 60s for all four days. At 14-under 202, he is currently three strokes ahead of Rory McIlroy, who had an excellent day on Saturday himself by shooting a scorching 65.
Throughout his career, the 27-year-old Reed has worn the red and black to pay tribute to Tiger Woods, who has had an up-and-down Masters to this point himself. Reed, meanwhile, has been remarkably steady, hitting eagle on the 13th and 15th holes and claiming birdie another four times on Saturday. That's the kind of momentum you can take into the final round no matter what you're wearing.
Of note, Reed added via the Sporting News that this isn't because of Woods himself, as Woods generally wears red and black on Sunday. It's a different thing entirely. Whether Woods follows this directive, of course, remains to be seen -- because what's Nike going to do to Tiger Woods?
Ask anyone that's been in athletics before: You do not want your juju thrown out of whack. The good news for Reed is that Nike is giving him a microwave excuse if things go awry on Sunday. If they do, it won't be because of the shirt, but that won't stop people from talking about it.
