Half a block from the flashing Jumbotrons of Times Square on 44th Street lies Jimmy’s Corner, the iconic boxing-themed dive bar where parts of Raging Bull were filmed. If Rory McIlroy tried to invoke the stoicism of Marcus Aurelius before the last Ryder Cup in Rome, only to be coined “Rocky” after nearly coming to blows with a caddie in a car park, the works of Martin Scorsese may provide more apt preparation in New York. The Northern Irishman might ordinarily be hugely popular in the United States, and his charm offensive went so far as to hail it “the best country in the world”, but Europe’s talisman will be the public enemy at Bethpage Black. There have already been boos and barbs. Now, the proverbial bottles will be thrown into the ring.
There are 12 players in blue but Europe’s odds of defying home advantage feel so tethered to McIlroy’s own fortunes. “He’s definitely the biggest presence. He’s the cornerstone that we need,” Jon Rahm, who actually has a better Ryder Cup win percentage (62.5 per cent) than McIlroy (54.5 per cent), said. Amid the giddy aftermath in Rome, McIlroy embraced that gladiatorial role, pounding his fist on a table during the winners’ press conference and declaring that Europe would be victorious here. One odyssey has come to a glorious conclusion since then after McIlroy finally summited his Everest at Augusta and completed the career grand slam in April. To end the wait for a first away win since the Miracle at Medinah in 2012 would practically open the gates of heaven.
“I’ve always said I’m proudest of my individual achievements in the game, but the most memorable moments and the most fun I’ve had in my career have been at the Ryder Cup,” McIlroy, 36, said. “So they are a little bit different but I do think that winning another away Ryder Cup, just considering how hard it has been over the past 12 years, would be one of the greatest accomplishments of my career. Whatever team — whether that’s Europe or America — is the one to break that duck, I think is going to go down as one of the best teams in Ryder Cup history.”
McIlroy’s relationship with the Ryder Cup epitomises so much of the tumult and triumph of his career. As a cocksure 20-year-old he infamously belittled the competition as an “exhibition” in 2009. A call from an ailing Seve Ballesteros which brought much of the locker room to tears before his first match the following year was the moment it dawned on him what the Ryder Cup represents to Europe. “We are playing for history. We’re playing for the players that came before us and the people that basically laid the foundations for what the European Ryder Cup team are. But we are also playing for the guys that are going to come behind us. We want to try to leave a legacy for them as well,” he said on Thursday when asked about what victory would mean.
McIlroy taunts the gallery on the 8th hole during his match against Reed at Hazeltine in 2016
JERRY HOLT/STAR TRIBUNE VIA GETTY IMAGES
McIlroy couldn’t fully appreciate how significant a feat Medinah was at the time. Back then he was in his swaggering pomp and everything seemed to come easily. Fast forward to 2021 and he was in tears behind the 18th green at Whistling Straits after a dire week compounded the misery of his major drought. Rome felt as much about catharsis as victory when he bounded down the 18th fairway to celebrate with Shane Lowry after taking four points from five matches. It was also unmistakably personal. McIlroy may be under strict orders from Luke Donald not to incite the Americans this week, but his palpable dislike of Patrick Cantlay and the ill-feeling over his exclusion from the player-led PGA Tour board is a fault line that runs deep.
Whether McIlroy can regulate those emotions in the face of a hostile crowd will be critical. At Hazeltine National in 2016 he was serenaded with chants of Sweet Caroline in reference to his broken engagement with the tennis player Caroline Wozniacki. McIlroy became so riled up that he shouted, “I can’t hear you!” after holing a tremendous putt in his defeat by Patrick Reed in the singles.
Justin Rose hailed McIlroy’s “thick skin” on Wednesday, but he did grab a spectator’s phone during a practice round as recently as March after being heckled about his collapse at the 2011 Masters. After the public filing and withdrawal of a petition for divorce from his wife, Erica, last year, it would not be a great surprise if the crowd stooped low again.
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Another intriguing subplot is McIlroy’s lingering feud with Bryson DeChambeau, whose unfailing jingoism will be fodder to the crowd. The American, who missed the Ryder Cup in 2023, seized on McIlroy’s capitulation at the US Open in 2024 to complete his rehabilitation from outcast to all-American hero. A de facto rematch in the final group at Augusta followed, after which DeChambeau seemed to bemoan that McIlroy did not speak to him during the round.
“I’ll be chirping in his ear [at the Ryder Cup],” DeChambeau later promised. McIlroy fanned the flames last week by claiming that DeChambeau only mentions his name to get attention. DeChambeau did not respond in kind and heaped praise on McIlroy, insisting he had “ultimate respect” for him, but a match involving them both would undoubtedly invite bedlam. “[McIlroy] is a fierce competitor, a great competitor, but I would love the opportunity to play against him,” he said.
If DeChambeau was the only person in the opposite corner, McIlroy would undoubtedly fancy his chances. Instead, he will be walking into a siege of 50,000 supporters praying for his downfall, knowing full well that his match symbolises more than a point. The gloves will be off, but then few golfers have rolled with the punches quite so vividly and still come out on top.
Ryder Cup
Bethpage Black, New York
Friday-Sunday
TV Sky Sports