Max Homa calls X 'a safe haven for a**holes' as he reveals why he walked away from it

With social media becoming evermore a breeding ground for hate filled messages and comments, one PGA Tour star has opened up about his need to take a step back from one website in particular.

A 2023 study from the Anti-Defamation League reports that 52 percent of Americans have experienced harassment on social media. Sports stars and celebrities see it all the time.

Among those on the receiving end of the vitriol is Max Homa, the six-time PGA Tour winner who built a social media following for roasting amateur golfers' swings at the users' own request. But now, he says that the inundation of hate has become too much.

Talking to reporters ahead of the John Deere Classic in the Quad Cities region of Illinois and Iowa, Homa opened up about the abuse he's received on the platform and why he felt the need to step away from it.

'The reason for that was just the vitriol you read online. It has become a safe haven for people who are, I think, angry themselves,' Homa explained. 

'It is quite absurd how comfortable people feel writing awful things. I step away a lot also from Instagram, but I feel like that's been a a bit less crazy, although it's still not great. 

'So I take my breaks from that. But if you wouldn't choose to sit around a table with somebody who's being that mean, I don't know. You would always get up. If you were right there and someone was being rude to you, you'd either ask them to leave or you would leave. 

'Twitter or X or whatever is an awful, awful place. It took me a while to catch on to how impactful that can be and how much of a waste of energy. 

'I missed the connection with the fans, but nothing comes without just so much hate and anger. There's a lot of love in there, too, but unfortunately, it really does get overwhelmed with the... You have one really bad one, but I don't know if it's a gambling world or whatnot. 

'I'm happy they can do it because it seems fun as hell in golf. But you get people... People say some bad things. You get people telling you should die on the Internet. 

'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 because I have yet to meet somebody in person who has said anything even remotely mean.

'It's a safe haven for a**holes, for lack of a better term. Sorry, PGA Tour.'

Homa has had a tough 2025 - having fallen from 41st in the Official World Golf Ranking at the end of 2024 to a current ranking of 99th.

His best finish of the year so far has been a tie for 12th at The Masters, while he's also missed seven cuts in 16 tournament appearances - including a cut at last week's Rocket Classic.