Rory McIlroy Keeps His Cool As Homophobic Heckling Overshadows The Ryder Cup
Rory McIlroy faced repeated anti-LGBTQIA+ slurs and personal taunts at Bethpage Black, with on-course reports describing homophobic abuse shouted during his swing and as he moved between holes. Golf Digest’s Joel Beall, who walked inside the ropes with McIlroy, recorded one fan yelling, “Don’t let your boyfriend down,” followed by additional slurs that he said were unprintable.
The Ryder Cup crowd was out of control at Bethpage and this will have definitely played a part. It wasn’t even 7am when an official announcer was leading the 1st tee grandstand into a chant of “fuck you Rory” on the mic.
— Flushing It (@flushingitgolf) September 28, 2025
Completely unacceptable
pic.twitter.com/mXhYmCXTPZ
An MC crossed the line, then stepped down.
Reports from major outlets like Golf Digest and ESPN have painted a grim picture of fan behaviour at Bethpage Black. Journalist Joel Beal, who was on the course with McIlroy, documented the abuse firsthand. Beal wrote that the insults have not been limited to homophobia, with other reports mentioning taunts about McIlroy’s Irish heritage.
Where the ‘Amanda’ chant came from.
So where did the homophobic digs come from? At DNA, we traced a line back to late-2024 online gossip that claimed McIlroy cheated on his wife, Erica Stoll, with a male caddie and used broadcaster Amanda Balionis as a “beard”. Sportskeeda published and amplified that allegation and related social posts, but none of them has been substantiated. Fans chanting “Amanda” at Bethpage were clearly pulling from that rumour mill, not from facts.
McIlroy at one point told hecklers to “shut the f*** up,” then went back to work and helped deliver Europe the trophy. After the matches he condemned the abuse, saying the behaviour crossed a line, and revealed his wife was struck by a thrown beer. Europe won the Ryder Cup 15–13.
Golf sells itself as a game of focus and respect. When discriminatory chants and personal insults are normalised, the competition suffers and people watching at home get the worst of the sport, not the best. Should golf adopt firmer in-stadium protocols for hate speech, the way other codes do? The organisers’ late etiquette prompts and added security were a start, but the bar can be higher next time.
"What happened here this week is not acceptable."
— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) September 29, 2025
Rory McIlroy speaks on the fans at Bethpage Black. pic.twitter.com/gMd7OzIUQ4
This Ryder Cup ran 26–28 September at Bethpage Black in New York. Reports of homophobic abuse and the MC incident were published on 28–29 September local time. Expect governing bodies to review hosting roles and crowd control ahead of the 2027 matches.
