Thought for the Day
No matter how many mistakes you make or how slow you progress, you are still way ahead of everyone who isn’t trying
The elephant in the room
For several years, if not decades, we have commented on the unacceptable behaviour of some golf fans, particularly at the Ryder Cup, but always with the caveat: ‘But it’s only a small minority of offenders.’ It’s now time to recognise that, while still not in the majority, the numbers of people willing to shout crude, asinine and offensive remarks is increasing year-by-year and there is now a pressing need to take effective action. If the golf authorities and those who host and police competitions do not, something good will be lost forever.
It is also time to recognise that the problem is at its worst in the Ryder Cup, and especially so when it is held in America. Commentators such as myself have tried our hardest to be unbiased and report that European (which often means British) fans’ behaviour at this biennial contest is not always exemplary, and we have been loath to point out what has now become blindingly obvious – American galleries take rude, crude, nauseating abuse to new depths. For example, Rory McIlroy walking onto the tee during his singles match with Patrick Reed, to be greeted with the cry: ‘Rory, go suck a dick’. That wouldn’t be excusable in a late-night drinking den for dockers and is completely out of order at a golf event. And it was emphatically not an isolated incident.
The PGA of America in particular has to face up to the fact that the three most raucous Ryder Cups, in which personal abuse hurled at players was most prominent, have all been in held in the States, on its watch.
In 1991 we had the War on the Shore at Kiawah Island, in which Corey Pavin wore a Desert Storm camouflage cap and Paul Azinger, ridiculously said: ‘We went over there and thumped the Iraqis. Now we’ve taken the cup back. I’m proud to be an American.’ Both men seemed unable to appreciate that comparing a sporting contest to armed conflict in which thousands died might be a tad inappropriate. And then to round it all off American captain Dave Stockton, who made it abundantly clear that he intended to win, no matter the cost, said: ‘I stirred up a hornet’s nest but I don’t care.’
Eight years later we saw the Battle of Brookline, during which Colin Montgomerie’s father had to leave the course, so distressed was he by the abuse being hurled at his son – including one ‘fan’ screaming a word that cannot be repeated here but which some refer to as ‘CU Next Tuesday’. Monty’s opponent, Payne Stewart, had to act as security and on several occasions waded into the gallery to point out miscreants who needed to be ejected from the course.
And now we have the Horror of Hazeltine, during which almost every member of the European team had to endure vile insults, often screamed at a volume that ensured they would be heard. Inevitably the primary target was Danny Willett, after his brother, Peter, wrote a completely mis-judged article in National Club Golfer in which he described American fans as ‘a braying mob of imbeciles’. The fact that he was subsequently proven to be right does not alter the fact that his offensive column, appearing just before competition got underway, saddled his sibling with a huge target on his back. Peter Willett is a teacher and can therefore be presumed to have an IQ somewhere above moron but on this occasion the evidence could lead you think otherwise.
The thing these three low points in the Ryder Cup have in common is that all occurred on American soil when the home team was desperate for a win after several years of defeats.
The most maddening element of the whole sorry episode is that offensive and intolerable behaviour could be eradicated almost overnight with two simple actions. First, don’t allow alcohol to be sold on course until at least mid-day. Second, employ security staff to immediately eject troublemakers. The Ryder Cup is a cash cow for both the European Tour and the PGA of America, so they need to spend a little of that money to prevent the greatest competition in world golf to continue sliding further into the mire.
And just in case you think this column is simply a case of sour grapes, let me say that the Americans thoroughly deserved the win because they comprehensively outplayed us, and congratulations to them.
Footnote
The singles match between Rory McIlroy and Patrick Reed, which the American took one-up has been celebrated, and rightly so, because of the spirit in which it was played. But it wasn’t the best match on singles day – for drama and superb play it was bettered by the clash between Sergio Garcia and Phil Mickelson. Between them they fired 19 birdies and as Sergio said afterwards, to shoot nine-under par and only get half a point was quite astonishing.
Quote of the Week
Half of golf is fun. The other half is putting
Peter Dobereiner