JOHNS CREEK, Ga. - Tiger Woods' former caddie drew a mixed reaction to the way he gloated over his new boss' first victory with him on the bag.
Some understood Steve Williams' frustration after being dumped by Woods. Others thought the caddie went overboard in his comments to the media, taking attention away from the guy who actually won the World Golf Championship at Firestone, Adam Scott.
The crowd chanted Williams' name as he walked up to the 18th green with Scott, who pulled away for a four-stroke victory. Afterward, Williams gave an interview that was nearly twice as long as the Aussie's, calling it "the best win I've ever had" - remember, he caddied for 13 of Woods' major titles - and making it clear he felt his ex-boss had treated him unfairly.
Steve Stricker said Monday that Williams was clearly upset and eager to let his feelings out after the acrimonious split.
"I'm not going to say if he went overboard or not," Stricker said after a practice round for the final major of the year, the PGA Championship at Atlanta Athletic Club. "It's just too bad their relationship had to end like that."
A pair of English golfers, who weren't at Firestone but watched the tournament on television, both went on Twitter to take shots at Williams.
"Cannot believe they have interviewed Steve Williams. Nice of him to take away from Scotty's win. Says it all," Chris Wood wrote.
Oliver Wilson chimed in, "Steve Williams taken all the attention off Adam scotts fantastic win! Played great and nobody is talking about him this morning!!!" He added a hash tag to his tweet with the word "shameful."
Stricker was more diplomatic.
"This is all media driven. The media is looking for a story here," he said. "I don't know the whole situation. I've heard two different stories, and I don't know which one is the real story. But, obviously, he was upset to the point that he said what he did in front of everybody. That's his right."
Woods also played at Firestone, his first tournament in three months, and finished 18 shots behind Scott. That only added to Williams' glee.
"Stevie was obviously hurt. He gave his all to Tiger for 13 years," said Nick Faldo, who will be an analyst on CBS' broadcast of the PGA Championship. "I'm sure there was an element to that where he was saying, "Hey, look what I've just done, mate.' I know Stevie is getting praise and criticism, both ways. That's kind of normal for him. That's Stevie."