Mental Health
‘It’s a safe haven for a$$holes’: Max Homa explains why he won't be coming back to X anytime soon
Max Homa rose to golf notoriety through an unlikely source: X (well, back then it was called Twitter). Displaying unusual candor and wit for a professional golfer, Homa amassed a dedicated following on the social media app long before he became a household name on the PGA Tour. For years, Homa entertained fans with his pithy takes and Average Dude persona, but as Robert Frost once wrote, nothing gold can stay.
Earlier this year, Homa announced he was leaving the platform that helped him to build, well, his platform.
"I think I've finally had a come-to-Jesus moment that it's for the sick," Homa explained. "I was sick. I'm just trying to get healthy now."
Most fans probably expected Homa’s X absence to be brief, considering his frequent use of the app over the years, but four months later, Homa still hasn’t returned and it doesn’t sound like he’s coming back anytime soon.”
“Twitter or X is an awful, awful place. It took me a while to catch onto how impactful that can be and how much of a waste of energy. I miss the connection with the fans, but nothing comes without so much hate and anger,” he told reporters at TPC Deere Run this week. “You get people telling you you should die on the internet. It has nothing to do with not connecting, I’d love to keep connecting with people, but I try to do it in person a bit more … it's a safe haven for a$$holes, for lack of a better term. Sorry PGA Tour.”
Homa’s whole response is worth listening to. He touches on how athletes can be put in the crosshairs by sports gambling as well as the disturbing anonymity social media can grant angry, lonely individuals. You don’t necessarily have to agree with Homa. Maybe you think this just comes with the job, which he gets paid handsomely to do, but it’s important to remember athletes aren’t robots, no matter much they may perform or sound like them at times.
Needless to say, we’ll miss Homa on X. His levity was often a bright spot on the increasingly dark and deranged outlet. But most golf fans will support his decision to put his health and happiness first. It hasn’t produced improved results yet—Homa has missed five cuts and finished in the top 50 just twice since leaving X—but in the long run, he’ll be a better pro, and a better person, because of it.