The U.S. yesterday won back the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club, but time and again over the weekend the matches were "scarred by incidents that have more in common with football or soccer matches," according to John Huggan of GOLF WORLD. After fan incidents on Friday and Saturday, the PGA of America responded yesterday with a zero-tolerance policy for "any fans who are disruptive in any way, including the use of vulgar or profane language directed at the players." That came after "vitriolic and abusive" exchanges between spectators and players on Friday and Saturday. The "unsavory truth" was that most of the problems were "alcohol-induced." It "probably explained what happened on Saturday afternoon by the seventh green, when a member of the gallery screamed something especially vile" at European player Rory McIlroy (GOLF WORLD MONDAY, 10/3). In St. Paul, Dave Orrick writes unruly fan behavior "faded into a non-story on the final day of the three-day event." Yesterday morning "began with an admonishment" from the PGA with its zero-tolerance policy. Somewhere between five and 10 fans "were ejected Saturday." But during yesterday's play, questionable spectator conduct was "hard to find." Not all transgressors over the weekend "were inebriated," as some "just seemed to be trying to get laughs" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 10/3). Team Europe member Danny Willett wrote on his Twitter feed, "Very strange week here at the Ryder cup.. Tried my best but played poorly.. Unfortunately some american fans showed that @P_J_Willett was ... In fact correct.. Nothing to blame my bad play on.. But still shows that sometimes fans don't know when to call it a day.. Shame really!!" (TWITTER.com, 10/3).
BEHAVIOR ISSUES? In Minneapolis, Michael Rand writes the "plea for better behavior" yesterday was "largely met." There was "nothing of the sort of stuff that was going on Saturday" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 10/3). Also in Minneapolis, Jim Souhan wrote the "general tenor Saturday afternoon was nasty." In the Saturday incident with McIlroy, a fan yelled something at him that "caused McIlroy to approach him." But McIlroy said, "That particular guy was obviously in the very, very, very small minority and just took it a bit too far" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 10/2). In St. Paul, Brian Murphy wrote "patriotism, hedonism and booze proved a volatile mix Saturday as the tension mounted along with the stakes." When the fan "barked something profane and crude at him coming off the seventh green, McIlroy summoned security and had the lout ejected." Later in the round, the crowd "practically serenaded McIlroy as he walked to the 16th green after his second shot, a horridly hooked 4-wood, sailed into the pond" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 10/2). In Boston, Ron Borges noted Jordan Spieth and Ryder Cup vice captain Bubba Watson on Saturday "appealed to the crowd after some spectators began singing, 'You have no majors! You have no majors!' every time Sergio Garcia approached his ball" (BOSTON HERALD, 10/2).
SILENT MAJORITY: In Minneapolis, Mark Craig writes McIlroy "sent a message to Parisians" who were "thinking of ways to get back at the few drunken louts who crossed the line." McIlroy, referring to the '18 Ryder Cup in France, said, "We wouldn't encourage any sort of retaliation. That's just not who we are. That's not what we do." He added, "Ninety-five percent of the people out there, the American gallery, are absolutely fantastic. They really are." Team Europe captain Darren Clarke said that fans on the 16th hole yesterday identified someone who "yelled in McIlroy's backswing" and had them "ejected by security." Clarke: "While it was unsavory and not the right thing to do, 99.9 percent of the crowd pointed straight at the guy and he was taken away. So the crowd deserves a lot of credit for policing the situation" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 10/3). McIlroy: "The fans as a whole have been very good and very fair, but just the very small minority are the people that sort of ruined it for everyone else" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 10/3).
ROWDY CROWD: GOLF.com's weekly roundtable discussed the galleries at Hazeltine. Golf magazine's Josh Sens said, "There are yahoos everywhere, and the larger the crowds get, the greater the odds that a few will show up. Part of me thinks that the U.S. crowd will be a little less hostile next time around because the Americans have snapped their losing streak." Golf magazine's Joe Passov: "I had never before heard the type of profanity used at specific players as I did this year. ... True, it's just a tiny fraction of the crowd engaged in this, but it has zero place in the game, and hopefully there will be zero tolerance for this going forward" (GOLF.com, 10/3). GOLFCHANNEL.com's Ryan Lavner wrote drawing in casual sports fans "doesn't just mean more eyeballs and ticket sales -- it also means more fans who aren't familiar with golf decorum." If Team Europe "thought some fans were over the top this week -- and at times, they were -- then they might want to avoid" N.Y.'s Bethpage Black for the '24 competition (GOLFCHANNEL.com, 10/2).
FEELING MINNESOTA: In St. Paul, Charley Walters noted anticipated gross revenue for the week's sale of Ryder Cup merchandise at the Hazeltine shops is "expected to end up at a record" of nearly $20M. Some 250,000 spectators were "expected for the week." Hazeltine invested $13M in preparation for the Ryder Cup, "including a clubhouse makeover, and is expected to make it up in tournament revenue" (ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS, 10/2). In Minneapolis, Patrick Reusse wrote the commercialization of the Ryder Cup was "definitely obscene." The Ryder Cup is not "about the golf," but rather the "10s of millions for the PGA of America and the European Tour." There is a "difference between a healthy profit and grabbing the customers by their ankles, holding them upside down and shaking them until their credit cards fall out." There were 40,000 tickets per day sold, but those "did not include the tickets that were in the hands of the outfits that leased the grotesque number of ultra-costly corporate suites." By Friday at 10:00am CT there were 51,000 fans "on the course." Reusse: "If it was about the golf, there would be half as many tickets available" (Minneapolis STAR TRIBUNE, 10/2).
UNTIL NEXT TIME: In Milwaukee, Gary D'Amato notes the "planning process" is underway for the '20 Ryder Cup, which "will be held in Wisconsin for the first time" at Whistling Straits. A contingent of about 70 Kohler execs, whose company owns the course, and '20 Ryder Cup committee chairs "visited Hazeltine last week to get a feel for the event and their areas of responsibility." Some 50,000 fans "turned out daily for the matches at Hazeltine," and '20 Ryder Cup Vice Chair Michael Belot "expects similar numbers at Whistling Straits." Belot said, "The course can hold a good amount of people. We also want to be creative with how we use the adjacent land to create some unique experiences for the fans on and off the golf course" (MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL, 10/3).
