Rory McIlroy celebrates his winning point during Sunday Singles at the 2023 Ryder Cup. | Photo by Naomi Baker/Getty Images
Rory McIlroy delivered an over-served fan a warning shot for the ages during a recent trip to the Old Course at St. Andrews.
It’s no secret that Rory McIlroy loves the Ryder Cup and that he bleeds navy blue and gold, the colors of the European flag.
He is also the lifeblood of the team.
After all, he posted a resounding 4-1-0 record last year at Marco Simone, snatching four points for the Europeans, which helped defeat the Americans with ease in Italy, 16.5-to-11.5. But a greater challenge awaits Team Europe next fall, when the Ryder Cup returns to the United States. Bethpage Black, the host of the U.S. Open in 2002 and 2009, as well as the PGA Championship in 2019, will host the biennial competition for the first time, and surely, the hostile New York crowd will show up in droves to cheer on the red, white, and blue.
Yet, on a recent trip to St. Andrews, McIlroy got a small taste of how the crowd may behave next year on Long Island. When an overserved American fan recognized McIlroy on the Old Course’s famous 18th hole, he serenaded him with, “New York loves you!” among other things, as captured by The Secret of St. Andrews Podcast on X.
“You’re not gonna love us next year!” McIlroy cried back, with hundreds of people gathered around watching the four-time major winner complete his round.
Indeed, the Europeans will arrive on Long Island as the underdogs, but they most certainly have as strong of a chance as ever. Team Europe has won eight of the last 11 Ryder Cups dating back to the beginning of the 21st century, two of which have come on American soil. In 2004, the Europeans, led by Captain Bernhard Langer, boat raced the Americans 18.5-to-9.5 at Oakland Hills in Detroit, socking the red, white, and blue even though the home side included the two best golfers in the world at the time, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.
Eight years later, at Medinah No. 3 in Chicago, the Europeans stormed back during Sunday Singles to shock the Americans on their home soil, winning 14.5-to-13.5. Team Europe won eight of their 12 matches and tied another on that fateful Sunday, allowing the Europeans to retain the cup and celebrate like no tomorrow.
The 2012 Ryder Cup marks the last time an away team won the competition, as it has flip-flopped since then, with the home side winning each time. But McIlroy offered a stern warning to that American fan more than a year in advance, demonstrating that the Ryder Cup is always on his mind. That alone should give the Americans something to think about.
Jack Milko is a golf staff writer for SB Nation’s Playing Through. Be sure to check out @_PlayingThrough for more golf coverage. You can follow him on Twitter @jack_milko as well.
