Matt Fitzpatrick issues response after being heckled by American fans during his Ryder Cup practice round

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The European Ryder Cup team have already experienced the rowdy atmosphere at Bethpage Black this week.

Even in the practice rounds on Tuesday and Wednesday, the American fans have booed and heckled them.

Indeed, a video of Matt Fitzpatrick getting heckled while practicing his chipping went viral on social media.

Fitzpatrick has now responded with his honest thoughts on the United States fans at Bethpage Black.

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Matt Fitzpatrick enjoyed heckles during Ryder Cup practice round

Although Fitzpatrick was laughing in the video, he would not be blamed for feeling frustrated with the heckling fans.

Thankfully, the 31-year-old is used to raucous crowds from his time following football in England, and so the incident did not bother him.

Fitzpatrick insisted that it was some harmless fun that would not distract him from helping Europe win the Ryder Cup this week.

“I mean, I’m from Sheffield, so that’s probably a good start,” he said. “Yeah, I mean, it was good fun. I think for me, you know, you’ve got to buy into it.

“I was having a good laugh with those boys, and we were laughing about it. They were telling me, ‘Oh, you’re probably going to be here on Friday or whatever.’ I was like, ‘Yeah, you’re probably right, to be fair.’

“So yeah, we had a good laugh there, and they actually followed us for a couple more holes. So I think, you know, like you say, you’ve got to take it on the chin, whatever it is.

“Again, like I keep saying, it’s what makes this event so fun, so special, is the fans. The fans are what make this event, and you know, it’s obviously a great opportunity for us to come and try and play our best golf in front of them.”

Matt Fitzpatrick has no concerns about Bethpage Black crowd

Fitzpatrick was then asked about the potential difficulty of having an American wife and how she might feel walking the golf course at Bethpage Black.

Again, the Englishman maintained that he expects no issues for him or his wife and is fully focused on the competition. 

“Yeah, of course, there’s always been conversations about what could happen or what couldn’t happen,” Fitzpatrick replied. “I think everyone is very well-versed on what that is.

“But again, we’ve had that conversation between me and her, and she said that it doesn’t matter. I’ll be out there, whatever, it really doesn’t matter. I’m not going to be affected at all.

“Everyone knows how it is, and like Keegan [Bradley] said in his speech, like Luke [Donald] said in his speech, I have no doubt everyone is going to be as respectful as they possibly can. I think that’s what makes it fun. That’s what makes it different.”