Henrik Stenson Calls Out American Heckler At The Ryder Cup
He put his putter where his mouth is.
There’s an age-old saying that goes something like, “Don’t talk smack if you can’t back it up.” Yesterday, David Johnson of Mayville, North Dakota put his putter where his mouth is at the Ryder Cup at Hazeltine National Golf Club after being called out by a golf legend. While standing in the gallery watching four-time major champion Rory McIlroy and Sweden’s highest-ranked player, Henrik Stenson, struggling to make a 12-foot practice putt, Johnson yelled that even he could make the shot. So Stenson invited him to come down from the gallery and back it up.
Johnson walked out of the gallery to a roaring crowd while English golfer Justin Rose upped the ante by throwing a hundred-dollar bill on the green next to the ball. Johnson took a few practice strokes, got a good read on the green, gestured to the crowd to be quiet, then he sunk the putt. The crowd went wild and then Johnson hugged it out with the men who asked him to show his stuff.
“Man, that was fun. What just happened?” Johnson told reporters. “I razzed them a little bit and they heard me which is insane. And then they brought me out which was more insane. Overall, that was a pretty cool experience. I would do it all over again if I could.” When asked how he approached the shot, Johnson admitted he was nervous as could be. “I closed my eyes, swallowed my puke, and hit the putt and it happened to go in.”