Four years ago at the last Ryder Cup across the pond, the abuse hurled at Europe’s most famous golfers ‘went too far’, according to legend of the sport Dame Laura Davies.
The Americans depicted Team Europe’s stars as pantomime villains. They were routinely booed and the subject of vile insults.
Even Shane Lowry’s wife was the victim of ‘dog’s abuse’ from ‘drunken idiots’, as the Irishman himself put it.
And this time around – at New York’s Bethpage Black – it’s been no different.
The gates at the famous golf club were opened to the American patrons as early as Tuesday morning to watch Team Europe and Team USA’s practice rounds, yet you would have thought it was time for the competitive action.
Masters champion Rory McIlroy was one of the first golfers from the away team to arrive at the first tee, greeting the crowd with a wave as the travelling supporters cheered.
Team Europe are vying to become only the fifth team in History to win the Ryder Cup on American soil this weekend
But if they do so, they’ll have to be a talented Team USA in front of a raucous crowd
Those cries of support were soon drowned out by a loud chorus of boos – a chorus which followed the Irishman, and indeed the rest of his team-mates, around the entire course.
It likely came as no surprise to arguably Europe’s most well-renowned golfer. ‘It’s an inevitability,’ he told reporters about crowd abuse before arriving on American shores.
Spaniard Jon Rahm, a two-time major winner, was one of the next up on the first tee.
One of the first shouts to greet the former Master’s champion: ‘Hey Rahmbo, where’s the Ozempic?’
Such insults are brutal, granted, but unexpected? Absolutely not. And likely to worsen when the competitive action begins in almost exactly 24 hours? Almost certainly.
Team Europe captain Luke Donald, who led his side to victory in Rome two years ago, has spent time preparing his team of PGA stars for the hostile atmosphere in America pre-tournament.
The Englishman provided his players with headsets playing insulting messages in the build-up to the tournament, while also incredibly employing paid actors to heckle his stars in order to prepare them for the weekend.
‘I think my job as captain is to prepare the guys for every scenario,’ Donald said.
Rory McIlroy was loudly booed by the home support as he stepped on to the first tee for practice
While Jon Rahm, a two-time major winner, was subjected to brutal cries of ‘where’s the Ozempic?’
‘Obviously there’s a bunch of us in our team that have experienced away crowds – maybe not New York – and we’ve certainly talked about it as a group, what you’ve learned, what you think you might have done well, what you think you might have changed.
‘The crowd factor is certainly one aspect that I’ve been looking at but I’ve been trying to look at this from a very different angle and that’s just one element of the preparation that’s going into kind of making sure that these guys are ready.
‘When we came up with that idea, it was just one idea in a multitude of ideas to get these guys ready.
‘At the beginning of a qualification you expect there to be a bunch of rookies that have not played a Ryder Cup before but we actually have a team that has quite a lot of experience being together.’
Ahead of the beginning of the highly-anticipate event, seven-time Ryder Cup participant – and former team-mate of Donald – Ian Poulter recalled the abuse he received across the pond.
He dubbed the atmosphere ‘complete and utter embarrassing stupidity’, but like something a golfer wouldn’t experience back in Europe.
”I don’t even know where to start. I mean, “mashed potatoes” and all that f*****g b******s that you hear is madness. “Get in the hole”, it’s a f*****g 600-yard par five, you f*****g idiot,’ the 49-year-old told SportBible.
‘I actually just want to borrow the taser from the security guard, just to get one go per hole would be amazing. Imagine that, you get one taser per hole. That’d be awesome. Right between the eyes, have it!’
The WAGs of the stars have been warned to stay away from Bethpage Black this week amid fears of abuse
Team Europe captain Luke Donald has however been preparing his team for the hostile atmosphere in New York
Ryder Cup legend Ian Poulter described the crowd in America as like nothing players would find in Europe
When asked whether the heckling has gone too far, he added: ‘It’s not heckling, it’s complete and utter embarrassing stupidity. You don’t get that at the Open Championship. You don’t get it anywhere. It’s only in America the stupidness comes out.
‘Ah f***, it’s annoying. There’s no need for it, right? Our fans when they come to watch the golf are very respectful. I’m not completely dissing American fans because the atmosphere in America is amazing.’
Europe are vying to become only the fifth side in history to lift the Ryder Cup on American soil after winning the event two years ago in Rome.
It will be far from an easy feat however with Team USA boasting Scottie Scheffler, Bryson DeChambeau and Xander Schauffele.
