It has been 153 days since the 2025 Ryder Cup concluded. The abuse Rory McIlroy & Co. faced at Bethpage is still fresh in some people’s minds. One of them is Darren Clarke, who has led Team Europe in the 2016 edition of the event. And he had an interesting suggestion on how the PGA of America could have controlled the situation in New York.

Joining The Golfer’s Journal, Clarke told Tom Coyne, “The whole issue could have been dealt with way better by the PGA of America. They could have had undercover people in there. Because the crowd stuff wasn’t by everybody.”

“It was caused by 200-300 people. You remove those 200-300 people, then you’re going to remove those 200-300 idiots, and the other ones that have the thought of doing the same thing are going to see them being removed. If they’re true golf fans, they’re going to want to stay and watch the golf. If they’re not, they don’t need to be in there anyway.”

The spectator abuse only came from a section of the crowd. And it’s not just Clake who is claiming it. Even Tommy Fleetwood, who experienced it himself when he was paired with McIlroy, can account for it. The English legend believes that if the PGA of America had been better prepared to tackle the issue, then it wouldn’t have gotten out of hand as it did. Even their President, Don Rea, had chosen to ignore the issue and stated that he wasn’t bothered by it. Still, Clarke had a few suggestions for them.

“Just undercover security in the crowd; get them out, problem solved. I don’t know why the PGA of America didn’t do that. You’re going to take the Ryder Cup to Brooklyn (Bethpage*), a brilliant golf course, but New Yorkers are New Yorkers. They’re passionate fans. There was always potential for that to happen. It overshadowed what should have been an unbelievable experience of watching the Europeans play well and then watching the Americans come back the following day.”

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The story at Bethpage was beautifully written on the golf course. The Europeans dominated the first two days of action. The home team nearly pulled off an incredible comeback on Sunday. The American side would have received more credit for their efforts had their fans not abused their opponents in the previous two rounds. The controversies overshadowed the home side’s efforts and instead exposed them to more criticism than they deserved.

With the Ryder Cup going back to Europe in 2027, the American team might face the wrath of fans as the away side. But Clarke believes it won’t be as bad as Bethpage.

Darren Clarke believes Team U.S. won’t get treated as badly at Adare Manor as Rory McIlroy did at Bethpage

What occurred at Bethpage was shocking for the entire golf community. And everyone in the community, including the experts, pros, and netizens, all had a negative perception of the PGA of America’s management of the situation. Even Darren Clarke compared it to his experience participating in the Ryder Cup in the past.

“Not once in any Ryder Cup have I been involved in, and I’ve played in five, vice captain twice, captain once. Not once in Europe have I ever heard an American player being spoken to that badly right before they hit a shot.”

Having played against the likes of Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson, the chances of facing fan abuse were much higher. Especially considering the fan-following they had during their prime. Yet Clarke never faced such abuse in his career. Even when he failed to lead Team Europe to victory at Hazeltine National Golf Club in 2016.

And he also believes that the American side won’t get the same backlash when they play in Europe in 2027.

Speaking of the next Ryder Cup, Clarke said, “You can rest assured, J.P. McManus will make sure that does not happen.”

J.P. McManus is the owner of the Adare Manor Resort in County Limerick. While revenge might be on some people’s minds, Clarke still believes the course owner and management will try to respect and honor the tradition of the Ryder Cup. And seeing what happened at Bethpage, they might also prepare for any situations where the fans start abusing the pros. We will see if McManus actually takes such preventive measures.