McIlroy was incensed after fans heckled while he prepared to play a shot during the second day of the Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black
Rory McIlroy lost his cool with American fans at the Ryder Cup as the morning’s foursomes drew to a tense conclusion at Bethpage Black, New York.
McIlroy was lining up his approach to the 16th green from the rough when fans behind him heckled, with one heard shouting: “Freedom!” as the Northern Irishman prepared to hit.
McIlroy snapped, saying: “Guys, shut the f*** up!”
The fans responded with “oooos” before watching him hit his iron shot stiff to three feet. His playing partner, Tommy Fleetwood, knocked in the putt to secure their win over Harris English and Collin Morikawa.
“I don’t mind them having a go at us, that’s to be expected,” McIlroy explained after the round. “But when I’m trying to hit my shot, that’s a tough thing, give us some respect and let us hit shots.”
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The incident came two holes after a major mistake by McIlroy, who blasted his putt towards the 14th hole in an effort to win the match. The ball ran past the cup and left Fleetwood a tricky putt coming back, which he missed, to give their US opponents hope.
The Americans then won the next hole to quickly move from four down and facing a humiliating defeat to looking at a potential comeback.
McIlroy was clearly frustrated, but let his golf do the talking as Europe closed in on another successful session of this Ryder Cup.
Having led 5½ -2½, it was first blood to the Americans on Saturday as Bryson DeChambeau and Cameron Young beat Matt Fitzpatrick and an out of sorts Ludvig Aberg.
But McIlroy and Fleetwood responded with that win over English and Morikawa, the same pair they beat handsomely on Friday morning.
Fleetwood has now won all six of his foursomes matches at the Ryder Cup, while the “Fleetwood Mac” combination also boasts a perfect record from four matches played.
Category: General Sports
