Lucas Glover ripped his shoes off on the green at the 3M Open after a complaint about his spike marks in apparent protest

Lucas Glover ripped his shoes off on the 10th green at TPC Twin Cities on Sunday afternoon in a bizarre moment during the end of the 3M Open.

While some surmised he was making a protest about AimPoint putting, Glover confirmed on Monday that it was actually an issue with his golf spikes. Glover still uses metal spikes on his shoes, something that isn't as popular on the PGA Tour as it used to be, and he apparently received a complaint from an official in the middle of his round. 

So, after making his putt, he walked off the green, took off his shoes completely and walked to the hole to retrieve his ball in just his socks.

"For 23 years on the PGA Tour, I've worn spikes. 23 years ago, most of us did," he wrote in a statement on Instagram. "It hasn't been that long since we were not allowed to tap them down. Yesterday was the first time I've ever had a complaint. I know there have been some pretty heated discussions and arguments between other players in years past about spike marks and knowing how to walk, but not since we've been able to tap them down.

"Yesterday was the first time I've ever been approached about my spikes. In the middle of the round, by an official, not a player. First of all, it's not the official's place. I wasn't breaking any rules … I did my best around the hole to tap down my damage as I was leaving the area. Have I mentioned that we can tap them down now? Or even fix a soft spike depression?"

To Glover's point, golfers are able to fix marks on the green before putting. So if a spike mark left from another player was in their ball's path, it theoretically shouldn't be an issue. Taking his shoes off, he said, was "literally the only way to not make any marks around the hole."

Glover ended up finishing T57 at the 3M Open after getting to 5-under. Glover entered the week coming off of back-to-back top-five finishes on Tour. He went T3 at the John Deere Classic earlier this month, and then finished T5 at the ISCO Championship. The 46-year-old has won six times on Tour in his career, most recently at the FedEx St. Jude Championship in 2023, and he's currently at No. 93 in the Official World Golf Rankings.

Glover finished 20 shots back of rookie Jackson Koivun, who picked up the win in what was just his third start as a professional on Sunday. 

"My biggest disappointment in all of this is that a small fraction of people are talking too much about this, a non issue, instead of Jackson Koivun," Glover wrote. 

"Looking forward to the Rocket Classic this week. I'll be wearing metal spikes, and the people playing behind me are still allowed to tap down the marks. Did I mention that?"