Rory McIlroy‘s Team Europe teammates came to the defense of his wife, Erica Stoll, after she was berated by American golf fans at the Ryder Cup.
Golfer Justin Rose told reporters he was unaware Stoll, 38, was hit by a beer thrown by a fan at the raucous event, underscoring how composed Erica was throughout the ordeal.
“I actually had no idea Erica had a beer thrown at her yesterday,” Rose, 45, said on Sunday, September 28th, moments after Team Europe defeated Team USA in the dramatic competition. “So fair play to Erica, she didn’t bring that to the team room. We didn’t make that a big deal.
Rose added, “that says a lot about the strength of Erica and everybody in this team today.”
Team Europe’s Shane Lowry went a step further, applauding the way Stoll stood strong despite relentless crowd heckling.
“I was out there for two days with Erica and the amount of abuse she received was astonishing,” shared Lowry, a close friend of McIlroy’s. “The way she was out there supporting her husband and supporting her team was unbelievable and kudos to her for that. Go on Erica.”
McIlroy, 36, also made sure to praise his wife in the aftermath of the American fans’ behavior.
“Erica’s fine, she’s a very strong woman,” McIlroy told reporters. “She handled everything with class and dignity like she always has and I love her. We’re going to have a good time celebrating tonight.”
McIlroy admitted that the fans’ behavior, which was also directed at him, wore on him throughout the competition. He was repeatedly heckled during his pre-shot routine, with fans yelling insults loud enough for cameras to capture.
At one point, he snapped back, telling the crowd to “Shut the f*** up.”
“For me, come and support your team,” McIlroy continued. “If I was an American, I would be annoyed that people acted that way. I didn’t hear a lot of shouts for Scottie [Scheffler] today. I heard a lot of shouts against me. Support your players.”
The four-time major champion added that, despite the hostility, he felt Europe’s performance silenced critics.
“I don’t think we should ever accept that in golf,” McIlroy said. “I think golf should be held to a higher standard than what was seen out there this week. Golf teaches you how to respect people. Sometimes this week, we didn’t see that. This should not be what is acceptable at the Ryder Cup. What happened here this week is not acceptable. It was a rough week for all of us, but we shut them up by our performance and how we played.”
Europe went on to beat the United States 15–13, securing McIlroy’s seventh Ryder Cup victory.
McIlroy later acknowledged that the abuse pushed him out of his comfort zone but praised his and the team’s response.
“It got to me a few times,” McIlroy said. “We tried to handle everything that came our way with class and poise and, for the most part, I felt like we did that.”
