Team USA’s Collin Morikawa has defended comments he made regarding fan behavior in the build-up to last month’s Ryder Cup, stating his words were taken “a little out of context.”
The 28-year-old later went on to remark that he wanted fans to “go crazy” during tournament days so that Team USA could use the home crowd’s energy to their advantage in trying to win back the Ryder Cup.
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He said: “Yeah, Whistling Straits, there was still a little bit of Covid. We had a crowd but it wasn’t as big as what they say it’s going to be here.
“I’ll be honest, I think it’s kind of tame so far, Tuesday and Wednesday. I know tomorrow is going to be pretty bad but I hope Friday is just absolute chaos. I’m all for it. I think it feeds into who we are and the American players and the American Team. We want it. Like we want to use that to our advantage.
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“I think every sport uses their home crowd to their advantage, and just because we don’t play in a setting like this doesn’t mean the craziness of New York and the rest of the country that people are traveling in from, it doesn’t mean that we can’t use that to our advantage.
“I think we really have to tap into that. I hope they come strong. Watching all these kids, I know they want autographs, but come Friday, I hope they go crazy.”
However, most people – including Morikawa – agreed that the actions of certain sections watching on in New York significantly crossed the line in terms of what is acceptable.
Rory McIlroy, in particular, was subjected to a torrent of abuse throughout the week while he and his wife, Erica, even had beer thrown over them at one point.
There were also several instances of shouting while players were stood over the ball and unsavoury comments directed at a number of other European golfers, leading McIlroy to criticize the overall standard of behavior post-event.
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Speaking ahead of this week’s Baycurrent Classic on the PGA Tour, which is being held in Japan, Morikawa was asked by one reporter whether he felt fan behavior “crossed the line” at Bethpage Black and whether he felt any responsibility for what occurred.
Issuing a defence of his comments, Morikawa insisted his pre-Ryder Cup words were not meant to inspire rudeness or aggression but instead encourage passionate patriotism from the stands.
He said: “I think we’ve taken what I said a little out of context. I think Ryder Cups are meant to have a lot of energy, right?
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“And I think me saying the word “chaos,” I didn’t mean for them to be rude, right? So, like, that’s not on me, I believe, for me to take credit for people being rude.
“I think what I meant was like I wanted energy, right? You wanted people to be proud of the country, the countries they’re rooting for.
“So I don’t think me saying one word, everyone listened and then — I don’t think I have the power to do that amongst people.
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“I think fans can do and say what they want sometimes. It probably crossed a line out there. It wasn’t in my groups but definitely what people were hearing [crossed a line].”
Morikawa is aiming to move past Team USA’s 15-13 defeat to Team Europe last month with a strong performance at Yokohama Country Club this week.
The six-time PGA Tour winner tees off alongside Chris Gotterup and Hideki Matsuyama in round one, which has been moved forward by two hours to protect against the “projected impacts” of Typhoon Halong.
