Heather McMahan Says Ryder Cup Row Sparked Death Threats and Graphic MAGA Fan Mail

Comedian Heather McMahan says her brief stint as Ryder Cup first-tee emcee led to death threats from European golf fans and sexually graphic 'love letters' from Donald Trump supporters who wrongly assumed she was a MAGA cheerleader.

The 39-year-old described the fallout from the 2025 tournament at Bethpage Black in a new interview with 'Obsessed: The Podcast', claiming a few seconds on the mic spiralled into a politically charged online storm.

McMahan said she became a target after she joined a crowd chant directed at Northern Irish golfer Rory McIlroy, repeating 'F— you, Rory' into her microphone during the competition. Footage circulated of the moment and the PGA of America later said she would not return to host the first tee on the Sunday.

'I'm like, why do people think I'm MAGA?' McMahan told Obsessed. 'And then I'm like, look at me. I'm always dolled to the nines; I always have a full drag beat on; I'm from Georgia; I live in Atlanta; I went to school in Mississippi. Like, I'm giving Blindside.'

How the Ryder Cup Became a Problem

The Ryder Cup is the biennial men's golf contest between the United States and Europe. McMahan, who described herself as a 'huge golf fan', was working as the first-tee emcee when the incident with McIlroy occurred.

McMahan said the reaction began after she joined a crowd chant directed at Rory McIlroy. She said it escalated after President Donald Trump attended the tournament the day before her appearance.

According to McMahan, she was not photographed with Trump and was not near him, but she said some British media coverage linked her with the MAGA movement.

'It was a wild experience,' she said. 'Trump had come out to the tournament the day before. I was never photographed with him, was never around him. We were not there. At the same time, the British media ran with this whole thing that I was MAGA now.'

McMahan said this assumption contributed to hostility from European fans, who were already critical of her conduct towards McIlroy and then concluded she supported Trump. 'They thought that I was, like, a part of Trump's cabinet,' she said. 'I'm, like, absolutely not.'

The PGA of America said at the time that McMahan had apologised to McIlroy and Ryder Cup Europe and had stepped down from hosting the first tee. The organisation did not publicly address the nature of any online abuse she said she received.

Death Threats and 'Love Letters'

McMahan said the reaction to her Ryder Cup appearance took two forms. She said European fans sent her death threats because they believed she supported Donald Trump, while Trump supporters in the United States sent her messages because they also thought she backed the former president.

'I was getting death threats from the European fans because they thought I was MAGA,' she said. 'And then the MAGA guys stateside were sending me love letters and d–k pics' for the same reason, which she called 'one of the worst things'.

McMahan's account has not been independently verified by IBTimes UK, and the messages themselves have not been published in full.

Rory McIlroy has previously played golf with Trump. He joined the then-president for a round in 2017, later saying he viewed it as a game of golf rather than a political endorsement, while acknowledging the divisive reaction.

McMahan, by contrast, has described herself as critical of Trump. In the Obsessed interview, she said she has praised figures including CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins, whom she described as an opponent of the MAGA movement.

Turning Abuse Into Material

The episode has not stayed confined to podcast interviews. McMahan addressed the misconception in her stand-up special, 'Heather McMahan: By a Thread', released on 16 October.

She said women found the whole affair 'funny as s–t', while her comedy friends urged her to 'double down'. She said they encouraged her to mine the backlash for material.

'As a comedian, these kinds of nuggets are what you live for,' McMahan said. 'All my comedy buddies were like, "This is great. You have to put this in your act." And then we made it special about it. So there you go.'

The Ryder Cup was already tense by the time McMahan's chant went viral. McIlroy told spectators to 'shut the f— up' during morning play after being heckled while lining up a shot, and European players faced repeated abuse from sections of the Bethpage Black crowd.

McIlroy later said that heckling was part of playing an away Ryder Cup, but that abuse while players were over the ball was the difficult part. 'People can be their own judge on if they took it too far or not,' he said.

McMahan has said the episode illustrated how a dispute at a golf event could be interpreted as a political stance. She said she apologised, stepped away from the role and then received threats from people who believed she was aligned with Trump.

The full scale or content of the abuse has not been independently confirmed. McMahan has said she incorporated her experiences at Bethpage Black into material in her new special.