United States captain Keegan Bradley defended raucous New York crowds that seemed to cross a sportsmanship line on Saturday in heckling Europe golfers at the Ryder Cup.

Personal insults, profane remarks and yelling to disrupt putts were among the things that pushed police to walk with Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry during their four-ball victory.

It didn't prevent Europe from seized a record 11.5-4.5 lead entering Sunday's 12 concluding singles matches, the Americans a distant 10 points from reclaiming the trophy.

Top-ranked Scottie Scheffler, a six-time winner this year with two majors among them, was no help, making the first 0-4 pairs start by an American in Cup history.

"I thought the fans were passionate," Bradley said. "Their home team is getting beat bad. They are passionate fans.

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