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Rory McIlroy was one of the most heckled European players during the recently concluded Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black. Following the conclusion of the event, the PGA of America issued an apology to the Grand Slam winner for the abuse he received, and fans have aired their opinions on it.
A post shared by NUCLR Golf reported that the European Ryder Cup team was prepared to pull out of the tournament if the verbal abuse directed at McIlroy and his wife was not curbed. The report also confirmed that both McIlroy and his wife had received apologies for what transpired at Bethpage Black.
One fan who reacted to the report implied that Rory McIlroy overacted to the heckles and should not have needed an apology from the PGA of America. The fan wrote:
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“Rory is such a beta. Why care what a complete stranger says?”
In the same vein, another fan claimed that the five-time major champion was “weak” for not being able to stand a taste of his medicine. The fan commented:
“Rory is such a p*ssy. Dude can dish it out but can’t take it. Weak.”
“Softttttt,” another fan added.
One fan urged McIlroy to take a page from Tommy Fleetwood's book. The fan noted that the Northern Irish golfer should’ve known that the abuse came from only a small number of people and as such, shouldn’t have taken it to heart.
“Rory needs to listen to what Fleetwood said. It was a small minority of fans. It should not have happened, those fans were wrong, but [the] majority of the fans were not like that,” the user penned.
On the other hand, some fans sided with Rory McIlroy, noting that the American fans were out of line with their heckles. One fan wrote:
“Formal apology??? There should be multiple firings or resignations at the highest levels. There is no excuse for what took place.”
“The behaviour and conduct by American fans was completely out of line. There is no place in golf for that,” another user added.
PGA of America chief executive says Rory McIlroy ‘might’ve been a target’ of heckling because of his talent
Following the conclusion of the Ryder Cup, Derek Sprague, PGA of America chief executive, offered a heartfelt apology to the European players, particularly to Rory McIlroy. He condemned the actions of the crowd and Bethpage Black and said it was unfortunate that fans crossed the line.
Spraugue theorized that perhaps, the Northern Irish golfer was heckled more than others because he is one of the most talented golfers at the moment. Notwithstanding, he promised to send an email to the World No. 2 golfer and his wife to apologize for the behaviour of the American fans.
“Rory might’ve been a target because of how good he is, but the entire European team should not have been subjected to that,” he said.
The executive also noted that there’s no place for unnecessary verbal attack in the Ryder Cup or in golf as a whole. He called golf a “great” game with good values and said he feels “badly” about the incident.
