Not sure I see the distinction

So.

On Monday, Scott McCarron said he wanted to make one thing perfectly clear: He never called on Phil Mickelson a “cheater.”

He merely said that what Mickelson was doing — using clubs with grooves that no longer conform to to USGA and PGA Tour standards — was cheating.

Oh.

The same day he denied calling Mickelson a cheater, McCarron bravely insisted he wouldn’t be silenced on the issue.

By the middle of the week, though, McCarron apologized to Mickelson — for whatever it was he said.