Rory McIlroy and his wife Erica Stoll have received an apology from the PGA of America over the abuse they received from spectators at the Ryder Cup.
Europe were forced to hold off a late fightback from the United States to secure victory in a dramatic finale on Sunday.
However, the European team were jeered and abused by American fans throughout the tournament with McIlroy and Shane Lowry among the players heavily targeted.
McIlroy told the crowd to ‘shut the f**k up’ as he prepared his shot on the 16th hole on the final day, while in a separate incident, he also asked security to eject a spectator for using a homophobic slur.
Meanwhile, McIlroy’s wife, Erica, was also targeted by hecklers and was hit by a drink which was thrown by a spectator.
‘It should be off-limits,’ McIlroy said of the abuse directed towards Erica. ‘But obviously it wasn’t this week.
‘Erica is fine. She’s a very, very strong woman. You know, she handled everything this week with class and poise and dignity like she always has. I love her and we’re going to have a good time celebrating tonight.’
PGA of America CEO, Derek Sprague, has now revealed that both McIlroy and Erica have been contacted in response to the abuse they received at Bethpage Black last week.
‘I sent a long email to share with Rory and Erica and just told him that we will do better in the future,’ Sprague told The Athletic on Wednesday.
‘I’m the CEO now. I don’t condone this type of behavior. This is not good for the game of golf. It’s not good for the Ryder Cup. It’s not good for any of the professional athletes, and we will do better.’
‘I’m disappointed in fan behavior, disappointed in the first tee and the emcee that it’s just that’s not who we are. And I was just really, really, really disappointed.’
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