Sergio Garcia’s American wife is ready to jump into the crowd again to tell her countrymen “leave out the insults because you’re embarrassing”, should their taunts here this week descend to the level witnessed the last time the Ryder Cup was held on this side of the Atlantic.
On a second day of practice here when the wind howled and Padraig Harrington, the Europe captain, went on a charm offensive by decking out his team in “Cheesehead” yellow foam hats – in homage to the Green Bay Packers, Wisconsin’s NFL franchise – Angela Akins’s comments were a warning of what may be to follow when the competition starts on Friday.
Akins is one of four Americans whose partners are playing for Europe. Organisers will afford them dispensation to watch the games from inside the ropes, and security will be with each group.
But Akins, the daughter of former Texas Longhorns quarterback Marty Akins and cousin of New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees, says she will be prepared to venture into the throng to silence the boozed-up boo brigade should their abuse cross the line.
Akins feels so strongly about the issue that she has gone on CNN, the nationwide news broadcaster, to detail her disgust.
“I understand cheering for your team but let’s leave the insults out,” Akins said, before revealing how, in 2016, she took matters into her own hands when one group of men began barracking her then boyfriend.
“I said to them, ‘I’m here supporting the European team, I’m an American, and you’re embarrassing me’,” Akins said. “The people around us joined in and said, ‘Yeah, you’re embarrassing us, too!’
“So, I said to the guys, I want to see American fans being better than that, and they said OK, then later on they saw me, they’d figured out who I was, and they came over and gave me a hug and apologised. I think there were four of them, we all hugged and it was all good.”
With the pandemic restrictions disallowing the vast majority of Europe fans from attending, there have been concerns about the one-sided nature of the support, and with the bars opening early, the potential for disorder – if only amounting to heckling – is clear.
Harrington clearly believes prevention is the best policy, at least at this point. “The Wisconsin fans are very appreciative and we want to show our appreciation,” the Dubliner said, after he and his team marched on to the first tee wearing their head accessories. “We think the colours turned out nice and I think the players are stoked; they are doing something to show their respect for the local state they are in.
“These fans have come out and they’ve come out on a cold day. They’ve come out to watch us, and we want to give them something to watch. It’s light-hearted. You want it that way in practice. It’s somewhat respectful of the Green Bay Packers, and they were very much on board with this, so a bit of fun and we got a nice reception with it. That’s kind of what you want on the practice days.”
There were certainly cheers, but ironically the biggest were reserved for Ian Poulter when his attempt at throwing the foam hat into the grandstand came up short. The 45-year-old anticipates more catcalling. “I’m sure I’ve annoyed plenty of my opponents,” he said. “But I enjoy holing putts and winning matches. I’m never going to apologise for it. It’s how match play should be played.”