Rory McIlroy snaps at fan with explicit outburst at PGA Championship
Rory McIlroy snaps at fan with explicit outburst at PGA Championship
Sam Frost Sun, May 17, 2026 at 10:40 PM UTC
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Rory McIlroy had a fiery exchange with a fan at the PGA Championship
Rory McIlroy had a fiery exchange with a fan at the PGA Championship (Image: CBS)
Rory McIlroy told a fan to "shut the f--- up" and had them removed during the final stages of the PGA Championship.
The six-time major champion was playing the par-five 16th at Aronimink Golf Club and left his third shot in the bunker when he was disturbed by comments from the gallery. McIlroy confronted them and delivered his expletive response before instructing security to remove them.
The remarks that angered McIlroy were not captured on the broadcast, but McIlroy's irritation was evident. His failure to create a birdie opportunity greatly diminished his prospects of claiming the tournament. He had appeared frustrated throughout much of the week, dissatisfied with the PGA of America's course configuration.
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Aaron Rai leads at nine under par, three ahead of Matti Schmid. Justin Thomas holds the clubhouse lead at five under.
McIlroy has experienced a challenging day at Aronimink, positioning himself poorly on the scoreable holes. Beginning the day at three under, he registered his first birdie at the second, but he then made 10 straight pars.
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McIlroy saw this chance to win his seventh major pass him by (Image: Carl Recine/Getty Images)
Nevertheless, the lead remained attainable, as only Rai from the numerous contenders managed to piece together birdies. But a bogey at the reachable par-four 13th dealt a significant blow to McIlroy's aspirations.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel for exclusive interviews with Bryson DeChambeau, Sergio Garcia and more He bounced back with a birdie on the next hole, but by the time he reached the 16th, nothing short of an eagle would do - and he missed the fairway. His second shot landed in the rough again, requiring all of his skill to scrape together a birdie.
However, when his pitch failed to crest the fringe and deflected right into the bunker, his frustration boiled over, with comments from the gallery sparking his fiery retort.
The episode came just a day after McIlroy had praised the crowd at Aronimink. He had endured some disgraceful treatment at the Ryder Cup in New York the previous year, but he noted that his reception in Philadelphia was a stark contrast.
"Again, 103 out of 104 weeks, I get pretty good support everywhere I go," he said. "It's just that one week every four years, I guess it is, that most of the crowd are on the other side, and that's fine. If I were them, I'd be on the U.S. side, too.
"But no, I do, I feel like I get a lot of support anywhere I go, and I'm very fortunate and very grateful for that."
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Source: “AOL Sports”
