By Matthew Neschis

Copyright irishmirror

A staff member at the Ryder Cup currently taking place close to New York City has reportedly issued an apology to Rory McIlroy after leading a vulgar chant about the Northern Irishman at the tournament on Saturday. While playing alongside both Tommy Fleetwood and Shane Lowry on Saturday, McIlroy was the subject of relentless abuse from the raucous crowd gathered at the Bethpage Black golf course. Addressing the harsh reception that the 36-year-old received, Ryder Cup organisers reminded spectators on the big screens to uphold a certain level of etiquette as police officers sprung into action to track down and remove unruly fans. Before the morning foursomes kicked off, Ryder Cup Emcee Heather McMahan did little to subdue the disorderly patrons while orchestrating chants. At the first tee, she was seen shouting “F— you Rory!” into a megaphone as those in the grandstands chimed in. Taking to social media, droves of disgruntled golf fans slammed McMahan for leading the inappropriate chant. “Someone on the payroll of the @PGA, who was paid to lead the crowd in chants, led them in a ‘F— you, Rory’ this morning as parents sat in the stands with their kids at the @rydercup,” one X user wrote. “This is the state of golf in America, 2025.” Another chimed in: “Heard the audio of this. It’s a disgrace if that person is the emcee again on the first tee tomorrow. All for getting the crowd riled up but that’s deplorable.” According to the Sports Business Journal’s Josh Carpenter, McMahan apologised to McIlroy for her behavior and stepped down from her role as first tee emcee, reports The Mirror US . Upon first being greeted by the “F— you, Rory” chants, McIlroy turned to the crowd behind the first tee and blew kisses in the direction of fans. The light-hearted nature of the trash talk quickly took a dark turn , however, as the afternoon progressed. Several times during his four-ball against Justin Thomas and Cameron Young, McIlroy was forced to back away from his shot as hecklers hurled profanities and vulgar comments his way. When the personal attacks intensified on the 16th hole, McIlroy abruptly halted his swing preparation and yelled “Shut the f— up” to one fan who screamed, “Freedom!”. Speaking to reporters, McIlroy said that he was largely fine with the way fans treated him. “I don’t mind them having a go at us. Like, that’s to be expected,” he explained. “I mean, that’s what an away Ryder Cup is. Whenever they are still doing it while you are over the ball and trying to hit your shot, that’s the tough thing. “You know, look, in between shots, say whatever you want to me. That’s totally fine. But just let us – you gave us the respect to let us hit shots, and give us the same chance that the Americans have, I guess.” When asked whether he believes opposing fans went too far with some of their comments, McIlroy replied: “When you play an away Ryder Cup it’s really, really challenging. It’s not for me to say. “People can be their own judge whether they took it too far or not. I’m just proud of us for being able to win with what we had to go through.” For more of the latest breaking news from the Irish Mirror check out our homepage by clicking here .