When does passionate support in sport spill into abusive behaviour? Unfortunately for the sport of golf that is the key question coming out of the 45th edition of the Ryder Cup played at Bethpage in New York.
The Ryder Cup has become the blue ribbon event for golf. First contested in 1927, it is held every two years (odd numbered years) and alternates between the USA and Europe. The latest installment started out as a walk in the park for the European team, racing into a 11.5 – 4.5 point lead heading into the final day, with the winning target of 14 points within touching reach. However, a spirited comeback by team USA had the result on a knife-edge with American golfers winning 6-1 in the singles matches, but Europe scraped over the line to win by 15-13.
In such a close contest passion in the crowd invariably becomes heated. The Ryder Cup is tribal, especially for the USA as one country takes on a continent, in a sport where its participants are known for their obsession. The Ryder Cup also has an unusual dynamic where a sport that is usually totally focused on the individual introduces a team element, along with all the zeal that brings.
New Yorkers have a particular reputation in the USA and around the world for being ‘passionate’ when supporting their teams. The event at Bethpage also became a potential perfect storm earlier this year when the most famous New York resident and avid golfer moved into the White House, with a promise to Make America Great Again. For some, Bethpage became a focal point for the MAGA movement, exacerbated by President Trump’s very high-profile appearances on the course.
After a fairly quiet day on the Friday, the crowd at Bethpage started to become hostile as Europe opened up their lead. Verbal abuse was hurled from the crowd towards the European players, especially Rory McIlroy, who ironically is a firm fan favourite on the PGA tour. Events escalated when McIlroy’s wife Erika was hit by a drink thrown by an American fan.
The throwing of drinks and verbal abuse is a poor optic for the world of golf. However, it wasn’t his wife getting a drink thrown at her that tipped McIlroy over the edge, but rather the constant jeering when he, and other Europeans, were about to take their shot. Eventually McIlroy snapped and swore at a supporter who had been heckling him as he was addressing a shot, as in his mind a line had been crossed.
All sports, and especially golf, exist on upholding a certain etiquette, by players and supporters. For players it’s following a set of rules or laws of the game; for supporters it’s based on being passionate for your team, while upholding respect for your opponents.
The irony that the USA supporter’s hostility to Europe enabled the Europeans to sprint out to a huge lead in the competition will not be lost. As McIlroy clearly communicated after the match, all the time USA fans were abusing him and his teammates they were not supporting their own players, which probably would have been more productive.
There’s a fine line in sport between support for your team and abuse of the opposition, which does get crossed on occasions. Golf has a reputation for being one of the more gentile sports, where supporters can get extremely close to the stars, and most of them treasure that access. The images of the massive police and security presence at Bethpage were sad to see at a golfing contest.
Players have a responsibility too, with a lot of the pre-Ryder Cup talk from participants focusing on the atmosphere that the New York crowd would bring, invariably describing it as ‘chaos’. The next installment of the Ryder Cup, the 100th anniversary, will be held at Adare Manor in Ireland. With that in mind, it was refreshing to hear McIlroy in his post competition interview clearly state that the behaviour at Bethpage needs to be viewed as a nadir and that “we will be making sure to say to our fans in Ireland in 2027 that what happened here this week is unacceptable”. I have no doubt that the supporters in Ireland will heed the warning and bring the passion without the abuse.
David Little is a Partner at Bishop & Sewell in our expert Sports Law and Corporate & Commercial teams.
If you would like to contact him, please call on either 07968 027343 or 020 7631 4141 or email: company@bishopandsewell.co.uk.
The above is accurate as at 2 October 2025.
The information above may be subject to change. The content of this note should not be considered legal advice, and each matter should be considered on a case-by-case basis.
