Kevin Pietersen says the abuse aimed at Europe’s Ryder Cup team ‘pales into insignificance’ compared to some ‘pretty dark experiences’ of playing cricket for England in Australia.
Europe won the Ryder Cup amid unpleasant scenes as American fans at Bethpage hurled abuse at players throughout the event.
Rory McIlroy received an absurd amount of heckling on the course, snapping back at fans at one point and having particularly unpleasant abusers removed.
Ryder Cup MC Heather McMahon even led a chant of ‘f*** you, Rory’ during the contest, which led to her stepping down and apologising.
At one stage, McIlroy’s wife, Erica Stoll, was struck by a flying drink, with the Northern Irishman condemning their treatment, joking: ‘I wish they [the police] had let the dogs off their leashes!
‘The police out there and the amount of security presence was insane.’
Pietersen is not entirely sympathetic to the situation, saying it is to be expected during this particular event and is little problem compared to what he went through during Ashes series in Australia.
‘I’ve played in some hostile environments in Australia,’ Pietersen told Sky Sports. ‘I can relay some stories, which I won’t do, which were so bad. That’s sport, it is what it is.
‘I know it’s not the game of golf, and I get it, and I understand it, but for one week of the year, it is what it is.
‘These guys are there, they’re fiercely competitive, they want to try to back their team, they’re playing for their country.
‘I’ve had some pretty dark experiences in Australia playing for England. From what I saw, some of it pales into insignificance when compared to some of the things I’ve heard when playing in Australia.
‘You just understand it and you accept it and you get on with it. McIlroy reacts the way McIlroy reacted, and it’s amazing. It’s great for the sport, it’s great for that event.
‘But it’s just a week of the year that just gets everybody gripped into the game. We all were, we all loved it, and they all live happily ever after. Monday morning, they’ll all be friends again, and everything’s good.’
US golf legend and three-time Ryder Cup winner Tom Watson said he was ashamed of the American supporters, apologising to the Europeans for what they had to deal with.
‘I’d like to congratulate Europe on their victory,’ Watson posted on social media. ‘Your team play the first few days was sensational.
‘More importantly, I’d like to apologise for the rude and mean-spirited behaviour from our American crowd at Bethpage.
‘As a former player, captain and as an American, I am ashamed of what happened.’
The beaten US captain Keegan Bradley was more defensive of the home supporters, saying: ‘I thought the fans were passionate. I mean, their home team is getting beat bad. They are passionate fans. I wasn’t at Rome but I heard a lot of stories that Rome was pretty violent as well.
‘But the fans of New York from what I have seen have been pretty good. You’re always going to have a few people that cross the line and that’s unfortunate. I was happy to see our players trying to quieten down some people that were like that.
‘But part of it is our fault. We’re not playing up the standards that they want to see, and they’re angry, and they should be.’