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Golf influencer Paige Spiranac tried to hold back tears while exposing hateful and negative comments she received online during the recent $1 million Internet Invitational.
Spiranac posted multiple Instagram stories where she explained the hate she received in her direct messages and elsewhere, which she admitted brought up insecurities from her past.
The first story involved a vulgar direct message that she posted in full.
“I f—ing hate you,” the message read. “You stupid b—- think you’re so much better than everyone at the Internet Invitational. Go kill yourself, you stupid c—.”
Spiranac has been participating in the Barstool Sports/Bob Does Sports golf influencer tournament that has captivated fans. But she was brought to tears while explaining how she “struggled socially” throughout her life.
PAIGE SPIRANAC OPENS UP ABOUT GOLF ATTIRE DESPITE TAKING HEAT FROM FASHION POLICE
“This hate, for some reason, has just been really hitting home for me,” she said. “I struggled socially my entire life… in big groups of people, making friends, keeping friends, relating to other people, reading social cues, saying the right thing at the right time.
“…I know it might sound weird considering what I do, but I’m just not effortlessly liked. …So, at the end of the invitational, I was really excited because I felt like I could fit in in the industry.”
The first-of-its-kind invitational brought together 48 golf content creators, with Spiranac being one of the headliners. Her team advanced through the opening matches during the first week of the tournament, giving her a chance to compete for the coveted $1 million prize.
The event was pre-recorded and will be released by the two creators over the next two weeks.
“I know there are more important things in life than wanting to be liked, and I want to fit in — and I’ve tried for a lot of my life to find places where I can fit in. And when I was at the Internet Invitational, I felt really good.”
While the moment felt great for Spiranac, she said watching the tournament back has brought up her past insecurities.
“Then now, to watch it back and the deep insecurities of childhood, whatever, is all coming back, and it’s confirmation that, no, you’re actually not liked, you’re annoying, and no one likes you. And you suck, and you’re terrible, and all these things. And it’s just hard because you felt good in that moment… then it’s like, just kidding.”
Spiranac has had to deal with hateful comments as she rose in popularity on social media as well as in the golf community. But she gave an update Tuesday morning with another Instagram story.
“Hi, good morning,” she captioned a photo with a thumbs-up pose. “Sorry for being emo last night, but thank you again for all the super kind messages. I’ll save my deep, dark insecurities for therapy next time lol.”
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