By Frank Pingue
FARMINGDALE, New York (Reuters) -Rory McIlroy had endured enough heckling from the hostile Ryder Cup crowd at Bethpage Black on Saturday and when the Northern Irishman finally snapped back with an expletive, he made sure to back it up with his golf clubs.
While preparing to hit from the rough 149 yards out at the par-four 16th hole, the rowdy and relentless crowd was giving the five-times major champion an earful and did not settle down even as he addressed the ball.
McIlroy backed off the shot and turned toward the nearby spectators and using an expletive, snapped “Guys, shut up”, prompting a mix of jeers, whistles and even some applause from the crowd.
He then went back to his ball and stuffed his approach shot to three feet for a birdie that gave him and foursomes partner Tommy Fleetwood a 3&2 win over Americans Harris English and Collin Morikawa.
“I don’t mind them having a go at us. Like that’s to be expected. I mean, that’s what an away Ryder Cup is,” McIlroy said after the match. “Whenever they are still doing it while you are over the ball and trying to hit your shot, that’s the tough thing.
“Look, in between shots, say whatever you want to me. That’s totally fine. But just let us — give us the respect to let us hit shots, and give us the same chance that the Americans have, I guess.”
McIlroy is typically a fan favourite when he tees it up but at the Ryder Cup, a biennial team competition between Europe and the United States, he has been a target of the home fans.
On Friday, McIlroy appeared to make a middle-finger gesture toward the spectators at one point, and before teeing off on Saturday he was blowing kisses to the fans after being greeted with abusive chants.
Then at the first hole when McIlroy was getting ready to chip from just off the green a constant chant of “U.S. Open!” emerged from the gallery, a reminder of the major he threw away in 2024 after missing a number of short putts.
But McIlroy also shrugged off that chant and chipped to a foot from the cup.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
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