Finally, after a frenetic afternoon in a febrile New York, Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry felt the love as they celebrated earning a point which edged Europe closer to a seismic Ryder Cup away win.
And it was down to the pair largely keeping calm in the face of American abuse, rarely rising to the bait and, ultimately, letting their golf do the talking as Europe swept to an 11½-4½ lead before Sunday’s singles.
McIlroy and Lowry received crude barbs at Bethpage – related to romantic relationships and their appearance – as well as the home fans ignoring golfing etiquette by shouting out as they were about to hit their ball.
Lowry had to be restrained from confronting a fan on the 10th tee. McIlroy, who was forced to back away from shots, described the whole experience as a “really challenging day”.
“What I consider crossing the line is personal insults and making sounds when they are trying to hit on their backswings or very close to when they are trying to go into their routines,” said European captain Luke Donald.
“That did happen a little bit. It’s happened at other Ryder Cups.
“It’s something we prepared for and I can see how well [McIlroy and Lowry] have dealt with it.”
The tension spilled over elsewhere, too.
Justin Rose was unhappy that Bryson DeChambeau’s caddie strayed too close when he was ready to putt on the 15th green – another no-no in golfing circles – leading to an exchange of words which also involved Rose’s playing partner Tommy Fleetwood and his and Scottie Scheffler’s caddies.
“I asked him to move. Maybe not as politely as I could have done but in the scenario, coming down the stretch, it’s intense out there,” said Rose, who regretted the incident might detract from a fabulous match that they won 3&2.
“If I should have done it a different way, I apologise.”
