• Tour Talk

  • Rory takes issue with rowdy fans, citing too much alcohol

On the face of his comments, one could make the argument that it's not something that other players on tour over the years haven't had to deal with and accept on occasion. So what makes him "special" as to feel that he shouldn't have to likewise deal with the same situation?

On the other hand... golf at that level has generally clung to a certain standard of fan decorum, behavior and etiquette as it relates to not becoming a negative distraction to those playing. At least when they're not playing in the Phoenix Open anyway. Speaking of which... back in the early 2000's at the Phoenix Open - Chris DiMarco was about to putt when a fan screamed "Noonan" right before he pulled the trigger. DiMarco made the putt, but then immediately signaled to a course marshall to have the heckling fan ejected from the tournament.

Who can forget a few years prior, and the way Colin Montgomerie was heckled by the fans back in the '99 Ryder Cup at Brookline? Payne felt so badly for Monty that he took it upon himself to intervene and plead with the fans to be respectful on numerous occasions, but to no avail... Payne became so frustrated that he conceded Monty's final putt on the last hole from well outside of 5 feet, as the Cup had already been decided a few minutes prior and really meant nothing in the overall scheme of things. But Payne's gesture reminded us that some fans just can't help but want to be part of the act and their behavior is sometimes embarrassing.

Justin Thomas, just a month ago at the Honda Classic, had a fan removed for jeering him on a tee shot and screaming for his ball to go into the water. Although he would've been much better off just letting the comment go and not making an issue of it, he grew tired of the fan continuously heckling him and had him removed.


Does Rory have a point? Is he speaking out about something that a lot of other players agree with but prefer to stay quiet about it because they don't want to be portrayed as whiny multi-millionaires who make excuses? Or is his skin too thin as it relates to fan behavior?

I tend to agree with him, personally. But interested to hear other viewpoints.

http://golfweek.com/2018/03/18/rory-mcilroy-calls-for-reducing-on-course-alcohol-sales-due-to-unruly-fan-behavior/

Alcohol is only part of the problem.
Limiting sales by vendors is difficult as these jokers move around the course.

Another issue is the Tiger fanboys are back in droves.
More on course enforcement by security (before any player has to ask for it) would help immensely, imo.
Some examples need to be made of these jokers.

It's a good thing that Rory has spoken up in spite of being slightly misguided in the cause of the poor fan etiquette, imo.
Maybe the Tour will listen if more players speak up now that one of them has.

Btw, I think Rory was way off the mark when he said he didn't understand how Tiger could play with all that noise and pondered whether it was a two stroke DISADVANTAGE to him, but in reality, it's the opposite.
The sucker that has to play with him on Sundays needs earmuffs or earbuds to play and that crowd ain't cheering him on whatsoever.

    Ringoblack

    What about the Bababoey, Get in the Hole, etc guys? Or all the fans who yelled something be it
    Go Tiger , Go Rory , after they hit a shot? What the differece between somebody yelling Mashed Potatoes or Go Tiger? How is it any worse, unless the player doesn't like potatoes?

    You either allow fans to yell, or you dont. I say let them cheer and yell after a shot , as long as its not something profane or personal and derogatory.

    Its a few fans of 10's of thousands and whats said after a shot has no consequence.

    Alcohol is probably a contributer but the Masters has lots of innexpensive beer being drank and its civil. They do however clearly stipulate that yelling isnt permitted, nor is sitting on the grass, running, wearing a cap backwards, wearing a large logoed hat or shirt etc...... is groumds for ejection though which might make for why we dont see much their.

      Spuzz

      Yep. Tiger definitely enjoyed an advantage, and he was quick to take full advantage of it, back in his prime anyway.

      He would always putt-out every chance he got, simply because he knew that his playing partners would have to deal with his fan base moving onto the next hole while they were still putting. And, of course, that's completely within the rules in stroke play. But still... he saw an advantage there in that aspect and took full advantage of it quite often.

      That's one of the things I like most about the Masters. They don't tolerate that kind of BS. No cameras, no cellphones, no heckling. And they don't care who you are, how famous you might be, how much wealth you have. I'm reminded of a story about the late actor Jackie Gleason, from "Honeymooners" fame, who was removed from a Masters Tournament back in the early 1970's. Everywhere Jackie went - he had a crowd around him. And he always enjoyed a few adult beverages or two. So he shows up for one of the tournament rounds at the Masters, and he and his gallery were loud and boisterous. He was warned about his antics and his distractions prior, yet felt that he was above board.

      Cliff Roberts came out personally and told him to leave.

      If they have the influence to remove celebrities, not to mention certain broadcasters from covering the tournament (Jack Whitaker, back in 1966 when he referred to the group following Nicklaus as a "mob scene", or with Gary McCord back in 1994 when he used the terms "body bags" and "bikini wax" during the same telecast) - they wield all of the power.

      Uppity? You bet. Hoity toity, this is how we run it and this is how we expect people to act? Certainly.

      But they run the show, arguably the biggest show in all of pro golf each April. I'm reminded of another Clifford Roberts quote, which happened many moons ago when he was still the chairman and involved in the tournament. That particular year, Masters Sunday fell on Easter Sunday. When asked about how his tournament would be competing with the Easter Sunday festivities, Roberts said, "We're not rescheduling our tournament. Find out who is in charge of Easter and have them change their date."

      Not that I'm a fan of Clifford Roberts. He was an obstinate son-of-a-bitch to be sure. But the tour today could use someone with an ounce of his hard-headedness as it relates to enforcing the rules. The PGA Tour is so worried about turning people off and losing money that they no longer have a backbone.

        Most golfers have rabbit ears. Never understood why golfers need dead silence to play, all other sports are the opposite. Noise doesn’t bother me at all. That being said the problem seems to have come up with Tiger coming back.

          Tinker

          Not really. Tiger's been back only 2-3 tournaments. This problem goes back further than that. And I think that the popularity of the Phoenix Open and the "anything goes" at that tournament has sorta bled into a lot of other tournaments.

          And I'm not against serving alcohol. Hey - I enjoy a beer or three when I attend an event in person. But at the same time - I also follow golf, am a fan of the sport, and understand what is expected of me as a spectator at that level.

          I agree that alcohol isn't the real crux of the issue. The real issue is that non-golf fans show up, see it as a social drinking party with their buddies, and then want to be part of the act. And again - the Phoenix Open is the standard to what they think pro golf should be like. I would wager that half of these problem fans, maybe even more, play less than a handful of times each season. Their marquee golf experiences those handful of times is the company beer scrambles they participate in.

          Ultimately this isn't about the fans. It's about an outright unwillingness for the PGA Tour to enforce their standards as it relates to fan behavior. No rule says a fan can't root and cheer. But I'm pretty certain that a rule does exist as it relates to providing these players an ability to perform without distractions.

          Golf isn't football. It's not basketball. It's not baseball. It's not soccer. It's a game that requires a huge degree of focus and attention.

          If I worked in an office setting, and that's how I made my living, sending out contract offers, bids, trying to increase sales, etc... I wouldn't appreciate someone in my office shouting and screaming at me while I'm working and trying to devote my time and attention to doing the things I need to do to earn a living. I wouldn't appreciate that, nor would you.

          I don't see golf (at that level, with so much money on the line) any differently.

            I don't think the fans yelling ridiculous shit immediately after impact adds anything to the game, and I think it's reasonable to remove those people from the gallery altogether. Applause, and audible positive reaction to the result of a shot is acceptable to a degree that the players and rules officials can tolerate. Cheering vs making an annoying spectacle of oneself.

            Golf is supremely precise, and the fans are often much closer to the players than they are in many other sports. I wish they'd STFU too a lot of the time. I like the Masters/Wimbledon atmosphere.

            Tinker
            I think the problem is when you grow up with mostly silence when playing tournaments then as you advance through the levels it takes to get to the pros the level of noise increases. Playing most other sports the crowd are usually larger and always noisy. It is just something you get used to and it is hard to get accustomed to the noise. Plus usually it is quite while you are setting up to hit and then people start taking pictures with their cameras, crowd movement as they want to get to another hole or further up the hole that is being played. It is not a problem or at least I think it would not be if there was constant noise, but when it is quite and suddenly someone yells or cameras go off in the middle of a swing or some drunk screams out some inane words while the player is hitting his shot.

            Playing ball when I was younger the noise never bothered me, in fact most times I just seemed to shut it out. When at bat you concentrate on one thing that is the ball coming out of the pitchers hand and that is just for a split second. As an example look at the tournament in Arizona. On the par three they almost entirely enclosed the hole. The noise is pretty constant and some of the players encourage the fans to get loud, then in fact want them to get louder. If you know there is going to be loud noise you concentrate harder to ignore it. When it is a sudden noise out of nowhere is a shock to the player.

              Tinker Noise doesn’t bother me at all

              Me neither.
              However, some drunken asswipe yelling mashed potatoes from 20 yards away in the middle of my back swing might have some influence on the result.

                  Spuzz

                  I think that happens a lot more than we're aware of. When we watch on tv - we're primarily watching 1/8th of the players playing, because the coverage is biased towards those playing well and in contention. We don't see what happens the rest of the time with those simply trying to finish well enough, earn enough money, to retain their cards at the end of the season. Which, mind you, is just as important (to them) as Rory trying to focus and win Arnie's tournament.

                  This isn't an issue solely exclusive to the one's who are the "needle movers." A lot of these players have to deal with it. And I'm sure it gets very old.

                      Spuzz

                      Any fan who yells anything during a players swing or putt should automatically be shown the exit.

                      Can't control roars, yells , noise from other holes , emergency vehical sirens . players often are required to reset after such. augusta is the prime example.

                      Extraneous Noise doesnt bother me either. I can play with music on. Played in a match last year where one of the opponents dropped his club at least 3 times in the middle of one my team's swing. Infuriating but we said nothing.....my playing partner let out a big sneeze during one if his crucial putts later in the match - he missed , lost the hole. We won 3/2

                          I don't think much can be done about the alcohol considering the amount of sponsorship at tournament site and during the broadcast from alcohol related businesses. Definitely boot anyone that is intentionally disruptive while a player addresses the ball or is swinging. Unfortunately, that doesn't repair any damage done to the player's immediate situation by the disruptive action, but at least it keeps the creep from following the same player all day.

                          I have zero desire to go see these ******* play. Hate to say it, but when I do tune in, it's mostly to see Tiger. I'd rather watch the LPGA.

                          Weirfan

                          Uncontrollable situations verus controllable situations. We all recognize the difference.

                          We also recognize when the Tour chooses to not enforce slow play, or enforce spectator behavior. Those are very much controllable situations, but for whatever reasons these things continue to be a blight on the game at that level.

                          I occasionally play with music on my bluetooth speaker, but have always asked my playing partners if they mind. And on the rare occasion someone isn't fond of it - I keep it off. I recognize that it's not "just about my experience."

                          I also make sure my shadow isn't anywhere in the peripheral view of a playing partner when he is swinging, and for whatever reason - I'm the one guy in the group looking over his shoulder and making sure someone isn't waiting on us.

                          Make it a point to not walk in someone else's putting line, will even rake a bunker from a playing partner's sand shot if it helps speed up play.

                          It's called "awareness."

                          And so many people have no clue to that concept on a golf course. Or, in this particular case, as a spectator at an event. It seems the etiquette part of the game has been overlooked for so long that a lot of this stuff no longer matters.


                            PA-PLAYA I think that happens a lot more than we're aware of

                            I am certain it does, especially on Thurs and Fri with limited coverage and the split tees are another factor as well.
                            In some ways, it contributes to an uneven playing field, which is unavoidable obviously, but unfortunate nonetheless.
                            At Riviera (I Think), there were a couple of groups who were finishing their rounds on the Front 9 virtually alone in a quiet setting while Tiger's mob was on the Back 9. It reminded me of twilight rounds with my buds, the birds and the setting sun as fans. lol

                              Weirfan Any fan who yells anything during a players swing or putt should automatically be shown the exit.

                              Agree but this happens inadvertently from adjacent holes, especially on old courses where the tee box is close to the previous green. I am not talking about crowd noise or cheers, but blatant shouting.
                              IMO, it also adds to slow play on tour because guys wait to putt out until tee shots are done and sometimes vice versa because they know some idiot is going to do it, especially around Tiger"s group.

                              The Seve Change Jingle and whatnot is a two way street that I find humourous most of the time, but I rarely play for anything serious so it's not a big deal.
                              It's akin to trash talking in hockey which I also found funny although I could respond with a body check or a punch to the face if I chose to which I believe is frowned upon in golf LOL

                                  Spuzz to trash talking in hockey which I also found funny although I could respond with a body check or a punch to the face if I chose to which I believe is frowned upon in golf LOL

                                  Perhaps not always

                                      Golf isn't football, so some decorum is needed. You can't have some asshole yelling Rory's wife's name following him around the course. Just as you can't have some jerk following Justin Thomas around rooting for his ball to get in a bunker etc.. The 16th at TPC Phoenix is an exception to the norm. It's a unique hole.

                                      I understand they want to attract new golf fans, but these new fans need to learn how to behave at tournaments. Rory was correct in calling out bad behavior.