Publications
Partners
London - Rory McIlroy has urged European golf fans to hold no grudges against the vocal American supporters that were present at Hazeltine.
Europe lost the Ryder Cup 17-11 to the USA over the weekend.
Much has been made of the hostility of the home galleries.
While the likes of Danny Willett felt that some of the
jeering and heckling of the European players crossed the line at times, others,
like Graeme McDowell, have insisted that it is all part and parcel of the Ryder
Cup.
"For me, I don't mind the post-shot stuff,” McDowell
said.
“ I expect, if I miss a putt in America, to get cheered.
"I don't like the pre-shot stuff, when players have to
back-off, because of a few idiots.
"But I don't mind the partisan stuff because I think
that's what the Ryder Cup is all about."
In weighing in on the debate, McIlroy has explained that it
was only a tiny minority of American fans who misbehaved at Hazeltine and
pleaded with European fans not to retaliate when the Ryder Cup returns at Le
Golf National in Paris in 2018.
"First and foremost, we wouldn't encourage any sort of
retaliation," McIlroy said.
"That's just not who we are. That's not what we do.
"We want to play this tournament in the manner in which
it should be played. And between us, the 12 players and vice-captains and
captains on this team and between the 12 players on the US team, it was
played in the manner in which it should have been played.
"We have no problems with anyone on either team, and
really, it's just a very small minority, 95 percent of the people out there,
the American gallery are absolutely fantastic, they really are.
"But this week, at times, it went a little bit too far.
But you know, that's to be expected.
“When you are teeing off at 07:35 in the morning, you're
seeing people on the first tee with a beer in their hand and matches aren't
finishing until 16:30, 17:00 in the afternoon, I know I would be done at that
point. I don't know what I would be saying!
"So it has to be expected. A couple of people out there
crossed the line, but we'll take it on the chin.
“We'll move on and we'll definitely not encourage anything like that to happen in France next time around."
