Trump Responds to Trolling by Team Europe After Ryder Cup

President Donald Trump had a surprising reaction to being taunted by golfer Rory McIlroy and Team Europe after they defeated Team USA to win the Ryder Cup on Sunday, Sept. 28.

After a tense tournament, McIlroy, 36, and his teammates shared a video on social media holding up the Ryder Cup trophy and chanting, “Are you watching? Are you watching? Are you watching, Donald Trump?”

Trump, 79, made an appearance on Friday, Sept. 26, in support of Team USA, though his presence proved uninspiring for the golf team, who fell behind Team Europe early in the tournament and could never claw their way back into the annual United States-versus-Europe competition.

Trump, who has a global reputation for weaponizing mockery, responded to McIlroy’s razzing by saying, “Yes, I’m watching. Congratulations!” in a message he wrote on his social media website Truth Social.

Team Europe won the event by 15-13 points, despite Team USA staging a late comeback attempt on Sunday, according to CNN.

The event was overshadowed by a raucous atmosphere amongst U.S. fans at the Bethpage Black course in Farmingdale, New York, where they repeatedly clashed with McIlroy and other Team Europe players throughout the weekend.

The 2025 Masters winner appeared to give fans the middle finger after finishing a putt, according to Golf.com, and then on Saturday, Sept. 27, yelled at a fan to “shut the f— up” during his backswing after he was being heckled during his approach shot on the 16th hole. 

ESPN and NPR reported that New York State Police said two people had been thrown off the course on Saturday following the incident with McIlroy on the 16th hole, while police said “additional” officers were dispatched to the course the rest of the weekend to help handle unruly fans.

McIlroy’s wife Erin was also reportedly pelted with a beer while the couple walked the course over the weekend, and an emcee on the first hole stepped down after leading the crowd in a “f— you, Rory!” chant earlier in the weekend, BBC Sport reported. 

“The police out there and the amount of security presence was insane,” McIlroy told members of the media after the tournament ended Sunday, according to Sky News.

“Look, nothing was going to happen — there wasn’t going to be a physical altercation or anything like that — but there was a lot of language that was unacceptable and abusive behavior,” he said. “The majority of people here are true golf fans and are respectful, but I don’t think we should ever accept that in golf.”

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McIlroy added: “Golf teaches you very good life lessons, it teaches you etiquette, it teaches you how to play by the rules, it teaches you how to respect people. Sometimes this week we didn’t see that. So no, this should not be what is acceptable in the Ryder Cup.”