Matthew Fitzpatrick suggests if he thinks Rory McIlroy was right to respond to the abuse he received at Bethpage

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Matthew Fitzpatrick was a revelation for Europe at the Ryder Cup, with much being made about his record in the event leading into Bethpage this past week.

There was no question that Matthew Fitzpatrick had a point to prove in the Ryder Cup heading into this year’s event. He had lost his five previous matches on American soil.

But he proved to be an inspired pick from Luke Donald, with the Englishman winning two of his first three matches. He also ended up tying with Bryson DeChambeau in the Sunday singles.

His performance was all the more impressive because of the hostile environment which was created at Bethpage Black by a section of the spectators.

Matthew Fitzpatrick reflects on how Rory McIlroy handled the abuse he received at the Ryder Cup

It is fair to say that the 2025 Ryder Cup was far from the PGA of America’s finest hour. Rory McIlroy was relentlessly targeted with abuse over the three days. Things got so bad that former US captain Tom Watson felt compelled to apologise to the Europeans.

McIlroy did respond at times, with various clips showing the Northern Irishman swearing at those behind the ropes.

Paul Azinger was critical of McIlroy’s conduct. But speaking in his press conference ahead of the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship, Fitzpatrick suggested that McIlroy was given good reason to react that way.

He was initially asked about his parents not attending the event.

“I think last week, obviously it would have been nice to have my parents there to experience it but you never know if it would be the same if they had been there,” he said.

“I think for me personally, people were giving me abuse about my braces. They were giving me abuse about my Skechers. Like that was kind of the extent that I heard. I’m sure there were probably words that I didn’t hear.

“Obviously Rory, Shane, in particular, got a lot on that Saturday afternoon, a lot worse, I guess. And obviously you see clips of various things being shouted out. Obviously it wasn’t great, and like Rory said, it wasn’t acceptable. I know obviously things have been said about what players have replied to to the crowd, which my opinion is warranted given what they gave in the first place.

“So yeah, I think mum and dad not being there probably made sense. I think they probably wouldn’t have necessarily enjoyed that atmosphere. I don’t think it was necessarily enjoyable as a fan, particularly, more for family’s sake, anyway.

“In terms of my own performance, it was obviously my best Ryder Cup to date by some distance. Leading up to, it I had been playing well, as well. Just gave me the confidence to go out there and continue and to have the result I did was a huge bonus.”

How Matthew Fitzpatrick became one of Europe’s most impressive players at Bethpage

Fitzpatrick noted that it was by far his best performance in a Ryder Cup. And some of the data certainly seems to back that up.

Only three players had better strokes gained numbers than the 2022 US Open champion.

Fitzpatrick was particularly impressive with his approach play across the week.

It was a remarkable turnaround for the 31-year-old who seemed to be in serious danger of missing out on the team earlier in the year. He went into the PGA Championship still outside the top 100 in the FedEx Cup standings.

But he proved to be a huge asset to Europe over the week. And while he will have been disappointed to only get half a point from his match with DeChambeau, that result was clearly crucial in helping Europe sneak across the line.