'He doesn't seem too happy' - Rory McIlroy throws remote-controlled ball into the water at BMW Championship
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Updated 21/08/2022 at 15:05 GMT
Rory McIlroy endured a frustrating day at the BMW Championship on Saturday, as his putter went cold and he lost ground on the leaders at Wilmington Country Club. The last thing he needed was a spectator trying to be the centre of attention. That was what happened on the 15th hole, and McIlroy took action by throwing the fan's remote-controlled golf ball into the water.
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Rory McIlroy threw a fan's remote-controlled ball into the water at the BMW Championship on Saturday during a difficult round for the Ulsterman.
Golf at the elite level is a high-stakes environment, and having to deal with overzealous spectators is par for the course. But when fans go too far, players can take action - as McIlroy did during his up-and-down third round that saw him lose ground with the leaders.
McIlroy had endured a frustrating front nine, as a cold putter saw him drop off the pace at Wilmington Country Club.
He got things rolling in the right direction with birdies on 12 and 13, and was looking to keep the momentum going on 15.
It was a hole that caused him problems on Thursday as he went into the water and made a triple bogey.
A birdie on Friday erased some of the bad memories, but he was on the green when a fan sought five minutes of fame by putting a remote-controlled ball on the putting surface.
As McIlroy was assessing his putt, he seemed deeply unimpressed as the fan sent the ball whizzing round the green.
After a couple of unsuccessful grabs, McIlroy caught up with the ball, before throwing it into the water to a spot roughly where his own ball ended up on Thursday.
McIlroy’s dunking of the ball was met with plenty of cheers from the crowd, but the owner seemed decidedly unimpressed as he remonstrated with the four-time major champion.
He was ushered away by McIlroy’s caddie, as a law enforcement officer made his way to the green to intervene.
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While there was a minority who were unhappy with McIlroy, his playing partner Scott Stallings was impressed.
“I thought it was great,” Stallings said. “I was about to go and do the same thing.
"That wasn’t exactly something I expected to see on a Saturday afternoon. He [the fan] kept yelling at Rory, 'This is my dream, this is my dream'. I don’t know exactly what he was dreaming about, but his ball is gone."
McIlroy will hope there are no distractions on Sunday, as he trails leader Patrick Cantlay by five shots going into the final round.
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