Europe Using Vr Abuse To Prepare For Ryder Cup

2025 Ryder Cup

Date: 26-28 September Venue: Bethpage Black, New York

Coverage: Live matter connected BBC Sport website of each 3 days

Europe's quest to triumph a first distant Ryder Cup since 2012 has resulted successful nan players utilizing virtual reality headsets to replicate nan maltreatment they are expecting from a location crowd successful New York.

Sports fans successful New York are renowned for being among nan astir vociferous and unforgiving successful nan United States truthful Europe skipper Luke Donald has sanctioned a caller attack to dealing pinch nan noise.

"It is to simulate nan sights and sounds," said Rory McIlroy, who was competing astatine Wentworth connected Sunday astatine nan DP World Tour's flagship BMW PGA Championship.

"That's nan worldly that we are going to person to woody with. It's amended to effort to desensitise yourself arsenic overmuch arsenic imaginable earlier you get successful there."

While McIlroy would not uncover what messages had been played, saying "you don't want to know", he did opportunity he told them "go arsenic acold arsenic you want" erstwhile he was asked really overmuch maltreatment he wanted to hear.

"You tin get them to opportunity immoderate you want them to say," he added. "You tin spell arsenic adjacent to nan bony arsenic you like."

It is nan latest ploy by Donald, who is looking to emulate Tony Jacklin, Bernard Gallacher, Bernhard Langer and Jose Maria Olazabal arsenic a victorious distant captain, to fresh his players for what he is expecting to beryllium a "bear pit" astatine Bethpage.

"We are doing everything we tin to champion hole ourselves for what it is going to consciousness like," said Masters champion McIlroy, who has called winning an distant Ryder Cup 1 of nan hardest things to execute successful nan sport.

"But thing tin really hole you until you're really successful that. You tin deterioration each nan VR headsets you want and do each nan different things we've been trying to do to get ourselves fresh but erstwhile nan first tee comes connected Friday it's existent and we conscionable person to woody pinch whatever's given."

And while overmuch has been written astir nan expected exuberance of nan American fans, McIlroy did constituent out: "We mightiness get location and beryllium like, this really isn't arsenic bad arsenic we thought it would be.

"No matter if you're an American squad going to Europe aliases you're a European squad going to America, it's nan same. You cognize you're going to beryllium up against not conscionable a awesome squad but nan crowd arsenic well. That brings its challenges.

"New York is decidedly much of a cosmopolitan city, much of a pouring cookware and much backgrounds and group place arsenic portion European. We should get a small much support but astatine nan aforesaid time, you're going to America pinch an American crowd."

Europe's players are flying retired to New York connected Sunday evening and will person 2 days of believe connected Monday and Tuesday astatine Bethpage Black, which is connected Long Island successful New York state, astir an hr extracurricular of nan metropolis of New York.

The 45th staging of nan biennial title against nan US takes spot from 26-28 September.

Europe are nan defending champions, having won 16½-11½ successful Rome successful 2023 but location person only been 2 distant wins this period - by Europe successful 2004 and 2012.