The European celebrations are underway in New York as Luke Donald’s men toast their dramatic Ryder Cup victory over USA in a boozy party at Bethpage Black.
On a breathtaking final day, which at one stage saw the hosts threaten to pull off one of the most unfathomable sporting comebacks of all time, Luke Donald’s men ultimately held their nerve when it mattered to seal Europe’s first triumph on American soil since 2012.
Shane Lowry’s match-halving putt against Russell Henley first ensured they would retain the Ryder Cup in a moment of euphoric relief, before Tyrrell Hatton took a half-point of his own to officially wrap up the victory.
While they did so in much hairier fashion than expected, Europe’s heroes will care very little after sinking their great rivals to win a Ryder Cup away from home.
And as the night fell at Bethpage Black on Sunday, the likes of Lowry, Rory McIlroy, Justin Rose and Jon Rahm were only just getting the party started.
Joyous Europe stars stayed out on the grass and began their boozy celebrations, cracking open the champagne and spraying it wildly to mark their memorable win on enemy territory.
They also savored the moment with a large crowd of adoring fans, who had remained on the course to watch them dance the night away while behind barriers.
The celebrations also continued on the team bus, where Europe players were seen serenading McIlroy with his famous ‘In Your Head’ chant in footage captured by Justin Rose’s caddie Mark Fulcher.
After a weekend marred by vile abuse from American fans, which spiraled out of control when McIlroy’s wife Erica was struck by a drink on Saturday, it is Europe who have had the last laugh in New York.
McIlroy, who lost his singles match against Scottie Scheffler on the day, was targeted relentlessly by US supporters during the three days of the competition and subjected to continual taunts and attempts to disrupt his game.
And following the victory, the Northern Irishman described the ugly scenes that unfolded as ‘unacceptable’.
‘Look,’ McIlroy said, ‘I don’t think we should ever accept that behaviour in golf. I think golf should be held to a higher standard than what was seen out there this week.
‘Golf has the ability to you unite people. Golf teaches you very good life lessons. It teaches you etiquette. It teaches you how to play by the rules. It teaches you how to respect people.
‘Sometimes this week we didn’t see that. So no, this should not be what is acceptable in the Ryder Cup.
‘But you know, we will be making sure to say to our fans in Ireland in 2027 that what happened here this week is not acceptable, and for me, it’s — you know, come and support your home team. Come and support your team.
‘I think if I was an American, I would be annoyed that people…I didn’t hear a lot of shouts for Scottie today, but I heard a lot of shouts against me. It’s like, support your players. That’s the thing.’
Meanwhile, Donald also clashed with USA captain Keegan Bradley over a little-known Ryder Cup rule that proved pivotal on the final day.
Europe sealed their 15-13 win thanks in part to half a point from Viktor Hovland – despite the Norwegian withdrawing from his singles match against Harris English.
Hovland was forced to pull out after aggravating a neck injury and that meant the ‘secret envelope’ protocol came into play. Under those rules, which have been invoked only twice since 1979, each captain named one player prior to the singles who they would bench in the event of an injury or illness on the opposing team. Bradley designated English.
The extra half-point proved critical as Europe withstood a final-day charge from the Americans. And after the match, Bradley fumed that the rule ‘has to change.’
‘I think it’s obvious to everybody in the sports world, in this room,’ he said. ‘Nothing against Viktor. But that rule needs to change by the next Ryder Cup.’
When those comments were put to Team Europe during their press conference, Donald hit back: ‘We have contracts for a reason, a captains’ agreement for a reason, for situations that occur.
‘The rule is the rule and it’s been in place for a long time… I think it’s been in place since 1971. The US have used it before. I think it happened in 1991 with Steve Pate.
‘That was a tight Ryder Cup, too, 14.5-13.5. It happened in 1993 – Sam Torrance couldn’t play with an injured toe. The US won that one.’
