Oct 2, 2016: Don’t poke the bear. Or in this case, don’t fire up Rory McIlroy.
While some small pockets of the Hazeltine crowd took the heckling past the point of friendly rivalry on Day Two at the Ryder Cup it was an ill-informed ploy against the former World No. 1.
For each over the top remark, McIlroy seemed to respond with a clutch shot or putt, going undefeated as a duo with Thomas Pieters on Saturday.
His roars were deafening. His fist pumps intense. At times his eyes were spinning. McIlroy was not going to back down.
At one point in his afternoon match an unruly fan was derogatory on the walk between the 7th and 8th holes and McIlroy stopped in anger, pointed him out with a glaring stare and asked he be removed. Said fan was escorted away from the area.
“It fueled me a lot. The more they shouted, the better we played. I hope they shout at us all day tomorrow,” McIlroy admitted.
“You try to keep the utmost respect for who you’re playing and for who you’re supporting. You know, that particular guy, this is obviously in the very, very small minority, just took it a bit too far.”
While the rest of his team could not muster afternoon wins, leaving Europe facing a daunting 9.5 – 6.5 deficit heading into Sunday singles, McIlroy remained proud of his 3-1-0 record over the opening two days.
“I feel like I need to take a couple Advil, I have a sore head listening to all those the last day, day and a half,” he added.
“I feel like I’ve been able to focus pretty well and I’ve played some of my best golf and the last three matches we’ve played, it’s been three points on the board. I’d give myself a pretty high mark for that.
“It’s a tough environment for us to come and play in. We expect that. It’s same for the U.S. guys when they come to play in Europe. You have to keep your concentration out there. It’s been a long day and sometimes emotions run high.”
All of this is set against the backdrop of Danny Willett’s brother Pete attempting to write a humorous column about unruly American fans in the lead up to the event, upsetting many.
He went over the top with his descriptive language but the irony is a small percentage of people seem to be intent on proving him right.
Team Europe teammate Sergio Garcia could not hide his disappointment at the disorderly element.
Despite numerous pleas around the grounds to maintain decorum, not everyone obliged.
“They have been quite poor. I’m not going to lie,” Garcia said.
“Obviously it’s unfortunate because I think that 85 percent of the people are great and I love playing in America. My girlfriend is American.
“But that 15 percent that is really bad, it makes them look bad. And I feel ashamed for my girlfriend, because I know how bad she feels when she hears all the things, but it is what it is. It’s as simple as that.”
It won’t get much quieter on Sunday with McIlroy slated to play the lion-hearted and vociferous Patrick Reed to lead out the singles.
