A former Ryder Cup captain has hit out at the abuse European players were subjected to during one of the tournament’s most volatile meetings at Bethpage Black last week.
Claiming a first win on American soil since 2012, Team Europe held on to triumph 15-13 over Team USA on Sunday but were targeted by horrific and ugly abuse from home supporters throughout the competition.
Team Europe’s golfers were forced to compose themselves at almost every hole while being jeered, booed and abused — and in one particularly shocking incident on Sunday, Rory McIlroy’s wife Erica Stoll was hit by a beer thrown from the crowd.
Two-time Team USA captain Tom Watson congratulated Europe on their victory on Monday afternoon and admitted he is ‘ashamed’ by the behaviour of fans at Bethpage Black.
‘I’d like to congratulate @RyderCupEurope on their victory. Your team play the first few days was sensational,’ he posted on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
‘More importantly, I’d like to apologize for the rude and mean-spirited behavior from our American crowd at Bethpage.
Two-time Team USA captain Tom Watson has congratulated Team Europe on their Ryder Cup victory and admitted he is ‘ashamed’ by the behaviour of American fans at Bethpage Black
The event was marred by horrific abuse targeted at Team Europe’s players by American fans
Rory McIlroy’s wife Erica Stoll was hit by a drink during a volatile final day of the Ryder Cup
‘As a former player, Captain and as an American, I am ashamed of what happened. #RyderCup’
Although all Team Europe golfers were targeted by fans, McIlroy in particular was subjected to continual taunts and attempts to disrupt his game.
His wife Erica became an extension of the abuse, with Shane Lowry admitting after Team Europe’s victory that the level of abuse she received over the weekend was ‘astonishing’.
Erica was reportedly reduced to tears on Sunday evening after a day of vitriolic abuse from American fans, which included having a drink dunked on her.
Her husband was subjected to relentless verbal abuse, including chants of ‘f*** you Rory’ and insults about their marriage.
Speaking after Team Europe’s victory, McIlroy pulled no punches in his criticism of American fans and said: ‘I don’t think we should ever accept that in golf. I think golf should be held to a higher standard than what was seen out there this week.
‘Golf has the ability to unite people. Golf teaches you very good life lessons. It teaches you etiquette. It teaches you how to play by the rules. It teaches you how to respect people. Sometimes this week we didn’t see that.
‘So no, this should not be what is acceptable in the Ryder Cup. We will be making sure to say to our fans in Ireland in 2027 that what happened here this week is not acceptable.
Watson took to social media to apologise on behalf of USA, calling out fans’ ‘rude’ behaviour
McIlroy celebrates with European fans after winning the Ryder Cup on American soil
‘Erica is fine. She’s a very, very strong woman. You know, she handled everything this week with class and poise and dignity like she always has. I love her and we’re going to have a good time celebrating tonight.’
When he was asked how startled he had been to see police dogs patrolling the fairways and greens at Bethpage Black, he added: ‘I wish they would have let the dogs off the leashes’.
In a message for US fans, he added: ‘I think if I was an American, I would be annoyed. I didn’t hear a lot of shouts for Scottie (Scheffler) today, but I heard a lot of shouts against me. Support your players. That’s the thing.
‘We shut them up by our performance and how we played… and we’re going to party like there’s no tomorrow’.
