The Ryder Cup MC who quit after leading foul-mouthed chants against Rory McIlroy says the backlash she has received has been ‘Salem-witch-esque’.
Heather McMahan, an American actress and comedian, had been employed to warm up fans and provide a light-hearted voice in amongst the heat of battle at Bethpage Black.
But McMahan found herself in hot water after she was filmed bellowing ‘f*** you, Rory’ into her megaphone at the first tee as McIlroy and Shane Lowry locked horns with Justin Thomas and Cameron Young in an absorbing fourball contest on day two.
The rowdy New York crowd needed no invitation in taunting and taking verbal shots at McIlory, who was subjected to relentless abuse throughout Team Europe’s 15-13 victory over the USA.
McIlroy – who was left visibly irate at several points across the competition – later condemned those spectators for their conduct after his wife, Erica Stoll, was struck from behind by a flying drink.
Separate footage shows the Northern Irishman getting another fan ejecting for the use of an offensive homophobic slur as tempers flared and threatened to overshadow the extraordinary golf on show.
McMahan subsequently stepped down from his role as MC for the part she played in the abuse aimed at McIlory, later telling her Instagram followers: ‘Guys, I’m having a glass of wine… It’s been a f***ing day.’
While McMahan was quick to issue an apology to McIlroy, it took the PGA of America 20 hours to formally address the episode.
‘Heather McMahan has extended an apology to Rory Mcllroy and Ryder Cup Europe and has stepped down from hosting the first tee of the Ryder Cup,’ a statement from the PGA of America read on Sunday.
A day later, once the dust had fully settled, McMahan took to TikTok to underline her ‘deep regret’ for the remarks she had made against McIlroy.
But the 38-year-old, who hosts the Absolutely Not Podcast, insisted the response to the incident had been over the top and akin to the Salem witch trials.
‘It’s [sic] was a really tough scene,’ McMahan replied to a video that @pamelawurstvetrini had shared in her defence.
‘I did not start the chant but I deeply regret responding back to the crowd – I apologised but I agree it little Salem-witch esque blaming me for the New York sports scene.’
McMahan was not alone in saying sorry to McIlroy, with an ‘ashamed’ Tom Watson taking the opportunity to apologise over the ‘rude’ and ‘mean-spirited’ abuse Europe faced over the course of the weekend.
‘I’d like to congratulate Europe on their victory,’ the former USA captain wrote on X, formerly known as Twitter.
‘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.’
While Europe celebrated their title defence long into the night, reportedly racking up a £230,000 bar bill in the process, a crestfallen Scottie Scheffler described the US’ defeat as one of the ‘lowest moments’ of his professional career.
‘My emotions on Saturday afternoon when the matches ended, I think it’s hard to put into words how much it hurts to lose all four matches,’ Scheffler told reporters.
‘This week did not go how I anticipated it going for myself and I’m a little bit bummed.
‘To have the trust of my captains and team-mates to go out there and play all four matches and lose all four, it’s really hard to put into words how much that stings and hurts.
‘I’ll go back and reflect on that. But one of the coolest things was these guys picking me up on Saturday night.
‘The guys on this team, this is a really special group of guys. We have a special captain and I was proud to be standing there fighting with these guys.
‘It was probably one of the lowest moments of my career, but it turned out to be one of the most special, just because I’ve got great friends in this room and I was really proud to be battling with these guys for three days.’
The world number one added: ‘Things just did not work out the way I anticipated, but I was proud to be able to get a point.
‘It’s tough, playing all five matches is a grind. Rory and I even chatted about that a little bit. It was a grind and I’m pretty tired, but I’m proud of the fight that our team showed.
‘It was a difficult week for me personally. I was just proud to get a point up on the board and keep this thing alive for a little bit longer.’
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