Rory McIlroy would like to see the 2025 Ryder Cup remembered more for what happened on the course as opposed to what happened off of it.
While Europe made history by winning an away Ryder Cup for only the seventh time in the event’s history, much of the focus has instead been on the verbal abuse McIlroy and other Europeans received from some of fans.
“I’ve been following the narrative coming out of the Ryder Cup, just like everyone else,” he said this week. “Unfortunately, I think it takes away from what we should be focused on, which is what an incredible performance it was by the European Team.”
McIlroy said that he didn’t realize in the moment just how good Europe’s performance was, especially during the first two days of the Ryder Cup when they built a commanding seven-point lead entering the final day of competition. He said that watching the highlights over the past two weeks has given him a newfound appreciation for what he and his teammates were able to accomplish.
“The Americans would hit it close, we would hit it closer,” he said. “The Americans would hole a putt, we’d hole a putt on top on them. And it just happened every single time.”
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On the precipice of a blowout, Europe had to withstand a furious comeback attempt by the United States on the final day of competition. As good as Europe had been during the first two days, that’s how good the United States was on Sunday during singles matches.
In fact, it appeared that the U.S. was on the verge of an historic comeback before Shane Lowry made two incredible shots on 18 that included a birdie putt that gave the Europe the win.
Europe’s dominance during the first two days and the U.S. comeback attempt on Sunday are just two of the main storylines from a Ryder Cup that won’t soon be forgotten. There was also the dynamic between the two captains Luke Donald and Keegan Bradley, the controversial “envelope rule” and the largely forgotten singles match between McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler that was the first in Ryder Cup history between the world’s No. 1 and No. 2 ranked players.
There was also the unruly behavior by some of the fans that led to PGA of America president Dan Rea Jr. issuing a public apology shortly after the Ryder Cup’s conclusion. McIlroy and others have also chimed in on the less than ideal experience.
Simply put, you can’t talk about the 2025 Ryder Cup without talking about the hostile environment that — for better and unfortunately for worse — added to the drama that took place during those three days at Bethpage Black in New York. McIlroy certainly understands that, but he’d obviously prefer that storyline to take a backseat to some of the other things that happened during what was a memorable three days of golf.
“I think the unfortunate thing is, it seems like people aren’t remembering that and they’re remembering the week for the wrong reasons,” he said. “I’d like to shift the narrative a little bit and just focus on how good the European Team was and how proud I was to be part of that team to win an away Ryder Cup.”