Most viral moments from the 2023 Ryder Cup
The Ryder Cup proved a massive success for Team Europe this year, beating Team USA 16 ½ – 11 ½. The Europeans managed to record their first opening session win since 2006, biggest foursomes win ever and the seventh consecutive Ryder Cup victory on European soil.
The Marco Simone Golf & Country Club staged a fantastic spectacle, as this year’s Ryder Cup became the most-watched edition on Sky Sports. The event attained 3.7 million total viewers with an average viewership of 785,000, a 25% increase from 2018.
Plenty of eyes were on the competition, and here are the three most-watched moments from the Ryder Cup last weekend.
Hats off to the Ryder Cup
Team Europe made a statement over the first three sessions, going into Saturday afternoon with a commanding 9 ½ – 2 ½ lead. The Americans then decided to make their statement- by waving their hats in the air.
Patrick Cantlay sparked the frenzy, deciding not to wear a cap for speculated reasons including issues over pay, a cap not fitting him, and even because Cantlay didn’t want his wedding photos ruined by the classic golfers tan line.
Joe LaCava, caddie of Cantlay, tried his best to distract Rory McIlroy on the 18th green by waving his cap in the face of McIlroy, resulting in an altercation in the car park. The dispute was captured by Sky Sports cameras, totalling around seven million views across multiple social media platforms.
A furious Rory McIlroy confronted a Team USA caddie in the car park, after he was spotted waving his cap in McIlroy's face when lining up his final putt on 18 😳pic.twitter.com/Ha4r5hDsGi
— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) September 30, 2023
The European fans observed the American antics and, in response, waved their hats around whilst singing ‘Hats off for your bank account’ towards Cantlay. This video is the most viewed from the tournament on X, amassing 8.3 million views.
“Hats off for your bank account” is the chant to Patrick Cantlay on the 16th. What a scene. #RyderCup pic.twitter.com/TzeSPXdSAu
— Stuart Fraser (@stu_fraser) September 30, 2023
Team Europe on fire
Plenty of pictures and videos from Team Europe’s celebrations have been made public, with the players enjoying themselves as much as the patrons at the tee box.
The chants created by fans seemed to find their way to the players. A TikTok of the players reciting their favourite songs on the team bus surfaced on X with key names such as Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Robert MacIntyre and Tommy Fleetwood enjoying the occasion.
Team Europe Bus. Highlight Reel. Enjoy. pic.twitter.com/Qk6X9ta2Zg
— Daniel Hussey (@DanielHussey2) October 1, 2023
A picture from the official Ryder Cup account showed that Tyrell Hatton was the last man standing on Sunday night, looking like he celebrated to the full.
https://twitter.com/RyderCupEurope/status/1708645569818702022
‘Colonel Sanders’ makes a splash
As Tommy Fleetwood clinched victory for Europe on the 16th hole, news started to circulate around the course, sparking scenes of jubilation. One fan decided to celebrate in an eye-catching way, evading security to sprint across the green and jump into the water.
Dubbed ‘Colonel Sanders’ by viewers online for his appearance and all-white outfit, the gentleman in question went viral for his dive as millions viewed the clips on X and Instagram. Named as John Burleigh, the 70-year-old former Liberal Democrats election candidate told BBC Scotland:
”I was overcome with excitement and sunstroke I think. It was boiling hot and I was thinking about how I could cool down after all of this. I thought one or two of us were going to do it but it turned out just to be me – so I just took the plunge!”
We got a loose one pic.twitter.com/bQQdGeba10
— Riggs (@RiggsBarstool) October 1, 2023
This viral video capped off the 2023 Ryder Cup. A tournament filled with highs and lows, wetting not only John Burleigh but whetting the appetite for 2025 when the competition heads back to America at Bethpage in Long Island.
