Rory McIlroy was annoyed, that could not be overlooked, but the Northern Irish golf professional at the Ryder Cup had not lost his humor despite the evil mob against himself and his wife.
“I wish they had let go of the dogs,” joked McIlroy after the victory of the Europeans in the heated atmosphere in the Bethpage State Park of Long Island.
At the weekend, police officers had accompanied McIlroy with dogs on his rounds. The world ranking runnership therefore did not feel uncertain, but the insults of the audience, which were particularly true for him and his wife Erica Stoll, were “not to be accepted,” said Mcilroy: “Actually, something should be forbidden, but it was obviously not that this week.”
He added his wife to the attacks with “class, attitude and dignity”. Also the Irishman Shane Lowry, who had transformed the decisive putet against the hosts from the USA at 15:13, was amazed at Stoll: “It is incredible what she had to endure out there and how she still supported her husband and the team.”
McIlroy had caught up with some fans on the course and let himself be carried away into an obscene gesture. “It was a tough week for all of us. But at the same time we silenced them through our performance and play,” he said. “We will have a lot of fun celebrating.”
The US golfers showed compassion for their European colleagues. “I don’t think anyone was in danger,” said Justin Thomas. But: “Words also hurt. There were definitely some bad things said, but I don’t think someone was really afraid of his life.”
The next edition of the comparison between Europe and the USA will take place in Ireland in two years. “It will be a bit nicer than playing here,” said Lowry, and McIlroy also announced: Europe will make sure that the viewers of the Ryder Cup 2027 know that “what happened here this week is not acceptable”.