Angela Stanford has praised the crowds at Bernardus Golf Club following the first two days of the Solheim Cup.
There has been a lot of attention on crowd behaviour within the game of golf over the last 12 months, with the 2025 Ryder Cup proving to be an ugly week.
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Sections of the spectators who attended Bethpage last September appeared to be determined to upstage the event. And it did not help that their behaviour was not called out sooner by Keegan Bradley or the PGA of America.
Meanwhile, there have been instances on the PGA Tour this season where some of the crowd have threatened to cross the line, with Matthew Fitzpatrick dealing with some heckling at both The Players Championship and the RBC Heritage.
Of course, the most noteworthy incident this year came at the US Open, when the fans at Shinnecock Hills could not have made it clearer that they did not want Wyndham Clark to win.
Angela Stanford comments on the crowds at the Solheim Cup
The atmosphere at the Solheim Cup has always been a big positive for the event. However, tensions inevitably rise as the event gets closer to going down to the wire.
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Stanford was asked about Jennifer Kupcho shushing the crowd at times during Saturday’s matches and whether she was concerned by the 29-year-old’s actions. But she insisted that she has no complaints with what has gone on so far.
Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images
“No, the thing about this week so far is the fans have been great. It seems to be great fans and they’re seeing our players, look, we’re in Europe. That’s what they do. And I haven’t told our players anything except, again, to each other, don’t pay any attention to what’s going on outside the ropes,” she said.
“They really enjoy it. It’s loud. I mean, there was one point on the first tee today it was so loud, it was the loudest I think I ever heard on the first tee. I mean, we had some great Solheim Cups and I was like, man, they’re bringing it. So I have respect for that, that the fans are showing up and they’re supporting their team. So I think it’s okay.
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“They’re having fun and it’s all even now, so we had how many people out there today? It felt like 50,000 people. So I’m okay. It’s in fun and, you know, the Europeans, you know, they hear it when we’re over in America. So it’s fun.”
The Solheim Cup is moving to the next level so should embrace the feistiness
The Solheim Cup has a difficult task. It is not yet as big as the Ryder Cup when it comes to support, but it definitely seems to be moving in that direction at a rapid rate.
So everyone involved – including the vast majority of those behind the ropes – feels a sense of responsibility to showcase the event in the best possible way.
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One day, you will probably not see the rested American and European players dancing together on the first tee. And you probably will see some feistier exchanges between the players on both sides.
It is a fine line. On the one hand, it is an opportunity to celebrate one of the greatest events across the entire game.
But that support from all sides does not mean that it has ever been some sort of exhibition.
The Solheim Cup must not force that bit of needle between the two teams, but Kupcho shushing the crowd is the kind of gesture that should certainly be embraced.
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