American golf fans lost all sense of sportsmanship when they shamefully booed Rory McIlroy from tee to green. This type of behavior played out over an entire three day event at Bethpage. The outrage fest grew to a level where McIlroy’s wife and family were subjected to violent and abusive remarks. Shane Lowry, who was subjected to verbal abuse Saturday, left players alarmed on Friday.
The incident caught the attention of 76-year-old Tom Watson, who is no stranger to the Ryder Cup, having played on four teams. Watson—a winner of five Open Championships, eight major titles overall—was clearly disturbed by the crowd’s conduct. If he was disappointed by the legislation, he showed it.
Justin Thomas was among those to see it all happen. He shared that he and his fellow competitors couldn’t help but root for McIlroy and Lowry. To see the spit and vitriol directed at them, he said, “We were just horrified for them. A clip surfaced in which Lowry’s caddie needed to hold him back. This came one hole after a fan shouted a sexist obscenity just before McIlroy’s tee shot on Saturday. In a startling episode, an angry fan tossed a beer in the direction of McIlroy and wife, Erica. The beer splashed her square in the face.
Thomas called this behavior “sad,” insisting that the game of golf should be better than what happened at last week’s tournament.
“I don’t think we should ever accept that in golf,” – Rory McIlroy
McIlroy echoed Thomas’s sentiments, stating, “There was a lot of language that was unacceptable and abusive behavior.” He said that the hostile environment took a toll on the game’s outcome. This resulted in little advocacy or help for players of his ilk, and Young.
“… I think golf should be held to a higher standard than what was seen out there this week.” – Rory McIlroy
It was Watson’s personal mission to personally investigate every single one of these occurrences. He said he was sorry for the boorish, vindictive treatment afforded the British player by the American gallery at Bethpage. He lamented how the home fans behaved.
Beyond just speaking to the crowd’s behavior, Watson gave kudos to the European team for their hard-fought victory. Historical victory Watson, a former three-time Women’s Open champion and U.S. Having lost in 2014, he now knows what it means to be a good sport on the golf course.
“Cam [Young] and I just wished that we gave them something to cheer for instead of people to cheer against. I think that was kind of the main consensus of the last two days,” – Justin Thomas
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