Venmo requests and death threats: Heckling in the digital sports betting age

Saturday, August 16, 2025 2:25 PM
Photo:  Shutterstock
  • United States
  • Doug Greenberg, ESPN

PGA pro Max Homa sat at the microphone for his media availability ahead of July’s John Deere Classic. It had been one of the least productive seasons of his career, with a T12 at The Masters standing as his only top-20 finish to that point.

But for all those frustrations on the course, that day, the 34-year-old took time to talk about the challenges he had been feeling off the course… specifically, on why he had largely taken a step back on some social media. “It is quite absurd how comfortable people feel writing awful things,” he said, alluding to the anonymity these platforms provide.