Rory McIlroy has revealed that Team Europe have been using virtual reality headsets which emulate the shouting of abuse at them in order to prepare for this month\u2019s Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, New York.<\/p>\n
Speaking after his final round at the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth in Surrey, McIlroy, who finished 7 under par for the day and 12 under for the tournament, told reporters Europe\u2019s 12-man team each had abuse tailored to them specifically as they virtually re-familiarised themselves with the course.<\/p>\n
McIlroy was asked whether he feels more prepared for this away Ryder Cup than last time out at Whistling Straits in 2021, when Europe suffered their heaviest defeat (19-9) at the hands of a young United States team.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think so,\u201d McIlroy said, after an eagle on the 18th delighted fans. He was also asked whether the team feel more prepared to deal with the away experience that awaits them Stateside.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mean, there\u2019s a lot of us that have experience at playing away Ryder Cups,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s a few of us who have experience of winning in away Ryder Cups, so I think that\u2019s a big part of it.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut yeah, we\u2019re doing everything we can to best prepare ourselves for what that\u2019s going to feel like on Friday week or whatever, but nothing can really prepare you until you\u2019re actually in that, you can wear all the VR headsets you want and you can do a lot of the different things that we\u2019ve been trying to do to get ourselves ready, but once the first tee comes on Friday, it\u2019s real, and you just have to deal with whatever\u2019s given.\u201d<\/p>\n
McIlroy said the 12-man team, 11 of whom were present at this weekend\u2019s DP World Tour flagship event, had been using the headsets to \u201csimulate the sights and the sounds and noise\u201d they are likely to receive at Bethpage.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019ve put abuse on there for us because that\u2019s the stuff that we\u2019re going to have to deal with,\u201d McIlroy explained. \u201cSo it\u2019s better to try to desensitise yourself as much as possible before you get in there. They said, how far do you want us to go (with the level of abuse)? And I said, go as far as you want.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou can get them to say whatever you want them to say. So you can go as close to the bone as you like.\u201d<\/p>\n
Team Europe, who are captained by Luke Donald, the returning skipper who orchestrated their victory in Rome two years ago, will fly to New York together on Sunday evening.<\/p>\n
The plan is to play the course in Farmingdale for real on Monday and Tuesday before being given the rest of the week off. Many of the team are using that time to play various east coast courses including Aronimink in Pennsylvania, which will host next year\u2019s PGA Championship. Shinnecock Hills is also proving a popular destination given it will host the US Open in 2026 and some of the team will be playing at Pine Valley.<\/p>\n
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