Donald and Furyk expect Adare to avoid repeat of Bethpage Ryder Cup crowd trouble

Luke Donald expects a passionate atmosphere at Adare Manor while Jim Furyk acknowledged that crowd behaviour at last year's Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black went too far

Team Europe captain Luke Donald said he's confident that the 2027 Ryder Cup at Adare Manor will be played in a 'great spirit'. Pic: Brendan Moran/Sportsfile

Two years on from the rancour and bad behaviour of American fans at Bethpage, European captain Luke Donald is expecting an altogether more civilised playing of the 46th Ryder Cup matches on Irish soil next September.

Not that the back-to-back-winning captain is expecting a quiet three days at Adare Manor. He wants a predominately Irish crowd in the expected 50,000 daily attendance at the Co. Limerick resort to roar the Europeans towards what he hopes will be a historic three-peat. Yet Donald on Tuesday insisted he wanted the centenary edition of the team matchplay event to be played in the right spirit and he received the backing of his Team USA counterpart Jim Furyk as the skippers marked the Year To Go event, albeit 49 weeks out from the September 17-19 matches.

“For me, it's certainly my responsibility as the home captain to play this Ryder Cup in the right spirit, and that's what, certainly, in conjunction with Jim and their team, we'll want to do. We want the best team to win on the golf course,” Donald said before recalling his experience as a European team member at The K Club in 2006, the last and only time the event was played on Irish soil.

“You know, everything I've seen, all the previous examples of playing here in Ireland, that has been the case, and so I expect that to happen next year again at Adare.

“I can only control what I can control. Again, I feel very confident that this one will be played in a great spirit. And again, I feel responsibility to that, and it's something that's important to me.

“I feel like having those strong values and acting in the right way is important, and I'll certainly be getting that over to my players and to the fans. I expect, you know, again, a very enjoyable but fiercely contested Ryder Cup.”

Furyk accepted some supporter behaviour at Bethpage in 2025, when Donald’s team bested a Keegan Bradley-captained home side 15-13 to retain the trophy had crossed a line but he does not expect a repeat at Adare Manor in 2027.

“I think that we have to acknowledge that absolutely at Bethpage, the fan behaviour was over the top. I think it's something that we need to reiterate and keep talking about; that the PGA of America has taken the steps for the future for that not to happen again,” the US captain said.

“What I expect here is a great European crowd. I think we admire how well organised they are, how they use the chants from soccer to make even more noise in unison, and I expect that they will be cheering and supporting their team like they always have.

“So it's always been a great crowd. I look forward to it to be honest with you. I loved coming on the road. I loved playing in Europe. I loved just stepping into that arena. It gets your heart pumping, and it gives you that chip on your shoulder and a mentality that I think our players need.” 

Furyk was also cheered by the example set by his world number one player Scottie Scheffler in the Presidents Cup at Medinah two weeks ago. Playing a singles match against Colombia’s Nico Echavarria, the International player was yelled at during his backswing. Scheffler conceded a 32-foot putt to his rival to halve the hole as a mark of sportsmanship.

“What happened in Scottie's match was regrettable,” Furyk said, “and I think what an unbelievable act of sportsmanship to give that putt, halve the hole, move on. He made it a statement that it was alarming to him, as well, and nothing that we want to see.

“You know, surely that wasn't the only act at Medinah, but I really felt like the crowd at Medinah, it was incomparable to Bethpage, and something we're working towards the future.

“Yeah, we want the play to shine. We want these players to be the superstars, and we want the teams to have the opportunity to go out there and shine and have the best team come forth.” 

Speaking after the Year To Go captains' media conference, Donald told reporters he would not be surprised if a similar act of sportsmanship occurred at next September’s matches when asked if Jack Nicklaus’s famous concession putt to Tony Jacklin was a possibility at Adare.

“I certainly think it could. We're very competitive, but certainly my message to the guys will be having strong values and doing things the right way.

"If you win, great. If you lose, you show respect and you do it in the right manner. I think golf is a great game for teaching those lessons of humility, of trust, of being honest.

“Strong values. I think that's what a lot of people love about the game. I think a lot of people will agree New York wasn't what it was.

“Jim, he said it was overstepped and wasn't well managed. I don't want to hark on that too much. I fully expect this Ryder Cup here with these Irish fans and all the other fans from across the world, it's going to be a great atmosphere.”