RYDER CUP 2016 McDowell fury at ‘classless’ fans
( Unacceptable Shouty Americans)
RYDER Cup hero Graeme McDowell said American fans were “classless” as USA and Europe shaped up for an epic final day at Hazeltine.
Huge crowds at t he Minnesota course became increasingly boisterous and Jordan Spieth at one stage tried to calm the gallery when Sergio Garcia was heckled during their morning match.
McDowell, who holed the winning putt at Celtic Manor in 2012, tweeted: “Shouting when player over ball is classless.”
Drunk
And former American Rich Beem, who won the US PGA Championship at Hazeltine in 2002, tweeted: “Throw the bums out, no need for sloppy drunk idiots ruining what is the greatest golf event in the world.”
European rookie Thomas Pieters was forced to back off a putt on the seventh green yesterday after a fan yelled: “Hit it in the water.” Rory McIlroy claimed he had never f aced such a “hostile” atmosphere at the Ryder Cup after he cheekily bowed to the crowd after winning his fourballs on Friday evening.
Danny Willett, whose brother Peter had called Americans a “baying mob of imbeciles” in a piece written for a golf magazine, was booed on his way to the first tee on Friday – and then abused by a drunken fan on the driving range that night.
Europe’s Spanish pairing of Sergio Garcia and Rafa Cabrera-Bello came from four down with six to play to halve their match with Patrick Reed and Jordan Spieth.
Spieth and Reed made five birdies in the first seven holes and were four up after 11.
But the Europeans fought back to win four holes out of five – and even had a chance to win the match on the last green before going in for lunch with the score 6.5-5.5.
Garcia, who shrugged off heckling, said: “It is the Ryder Cup – simple as that. I had to take a lot of deep breathes on 17 and 18. It was emotional and we are so happy to get it back to all square and then we had the chance to win the match.
“It was tough out there. They played so well.
“I felt like we played really, really good but they had an amazing start.
“We kept saying: ‘Keep at it, keep at it, keep up the pressure and they will slow a little bit’.”
Rookie Cabrera- Bello added: “We saw a window of opportunity and we played well on the last few holes.”
Tense
Fellow debutant Chris Wood won his first Ryder Cup match when he and Justin Rose held on to beat Major champions Zach Walker and Jimmy Walker one-up.
The Europeans were threeup after 13 but Rose found water at 16 and Wood had to nestle up a long putt to guarantee par on the last to seal the win.
Rose said: “It was tense – it’s squeaky bum time coming down the stretch.”
Matt Fitzpatrick and Henrik Stenson lost 3& 2 to Brandt Snedeker and Brooks Koepka.