Rory McIlroy appeared to raise his middle finger at American fans during the opening day of the Ryder Cup on Friday.

After an exceptional morning for Team Europe, who took a 3-1 lead after the foursomes action, things heated up in the afternoon with the fourballs. 

The home support was expected to be hostile and raucous at Bethpage Black, and US fans ramped up the noise as the day went on.

This led to a flashpoint in the fourth and final match of the afternoon where McIlroy and Shane Lowry were taking on Patrick Cantlay and Sam Burns. 

The European pair faced persistent heckling, and after taking a two-hole lead on the 11th, McIlroy seemed to react to a particular remark.

In a viral social media clip, as he walked off the green with Lowry amidst loud crowd noise, McIlroy appeared to raise his middle finger in response to the fans.

GRAPHIC WARNING 

Rory McIlroy appeared to raise his middle finger at American fans at the Ryder Cup on Friday

It came during an intense afternoon on day one of the 2025 competition at Bethpage Black

Within the video, McIlroy turned his head and raised his left hand, before he marched on towards the next hole. 

McIlroy’s actions generated traction online – with some fans suggesting he was simply waving – and several weighed in on what he had done.

The 36-year-old attracted praise from multiple users as one said: ‘Well that’s one way to respond to the crowd.’

Someone commented: ‘Guarantee whoever it was deserved it lol,’ while another noted: ‘Don’t particularly like Rory but I don’t mind it, good to see some fight in him.’

An extra user said: ‘Love it,’ and another added: ‘Good man, Rory.’

However, others criticised his actions. ‘Means we (Team USA) are getting under his skin,’ one said, as another commented: ‘He should chill.’

McIlroy’s fourball game concluded in a draw, with support from his wife Erica Stoll, who led the WAGS of both teams in cheering on their partners.

Stoll was wearing a straw colored hat and blouse and was seen with golf jewelry on – including a Patek Philippe Nautilus watch.

Erica Stoll, the wife of McIlroy, was among the wives and girlfriends at the Ryder Cup

McIlroy and Shane Lowry (R) were heckled by a raucous crowd throughout their match

Earlier, McIlroy and Tommy Fleetwood comfortably won their foursomes game 5&4

The intense atmosphere in New York has been a major topic before this year’s Ryder Cup. European captain Luke Donald used virtual reality headsets to expose his players to crowd abuse to prepare them.

Donald also employed actors to heckle players with the hope of desensitising his team when it happens over the weekend. 

Speaking about his tactics earlier this week, Donald had said: ‘I think my job as captain is to prepare the guys for every scenario.

‘We’ve got guys on our team who have dealt with away crowds before – perhaps not in New York – and as a group, we’ve shared lessons, discussed past experiences, and considered what we might do differently,’ said Donald.

‘The crowd factor is certainly one aspect that I’ve been looking at but I’ve been trying to look at this from a very different angle and that’s just one element of the preparation that’s going into kind of making sure that these guys are ready.

‘When we came up with that idea, it was just one idea in a multitude of ideas to get these guys ready.

‘At the beginning of a qualification you expect there to be a bunch of rookies that have not played a Ryder Cup before but we actually have a team that has quite a lot of experience being together.’

McIlroy had earlier won his foursomes clash alongside Tommy Fleetwood on Friday morning, with the pair beating Collin Morikawa and Harris English 5&4.