The 2025 season gave us plenty of fan-favorite moments, from Rory McIlroy finally slipping into the green jacket to Scottie Scheffler’s season-long dominance. We all know about them, and we have read about them. 

But what about the moments that left fans dejected and disappointed? Here, we look at five moments from the 2025 season where viewers felt the heartbreak just as deeply as the pros themselves, and the last one is particularly controversial.

Nelly Korda’s 2025 winless season

Nelly Korda had her first winless season since 2018 after failing to record an individual win in 2025. 

Despite Korda’s winless run, she finished runner-up twice on tour. She tied for second with Rio Takeda at the 2025 U.S. Women’s Open at Erin Hills, two strokes behind Maja Stark.

And Korda’s other runner-up finish came at the Hilton Grand Vacations Tournament of Champions, where she finished two strokes behind A Lim Kim. She also added multiple top-10 results across the season.

In August 2025, Korda lost the World No. 1 ranking to Atthaya Thitikul, ending a 71 consecutive run at the top.

Xander Schauffele

Xander Schauffele’s 2025 season included a mid-season rib injury that affected his results and a win at the Baycurrent Classic in Japan later in the year. Schauffele finished the season ranked World No. 4. 

The Baycurrent Classic in October was Schauffele’s only win of the season, ending a 15-month winless stretch that dated back to his Open Championship victory in July 2024.

Xander Schauffele sustained an intercostal strain during the offseason and played through the injury at The Sentry in January 2025 before missing two months of competition. 

He later explained that the injury and the break from play affected his performance and confidence throughout the season.

Team USA at the Ryder Cup

Team USA, captained by Keegan Bradley, lost to Team Europe at the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, New York. After falling behind across the first two days, Team USA reduced the deficit during the final-day match play but was unable to close the remaining gap.

Europe led 11.5–4.5 after the first two days of foursomes and fourballs, the largest advantage entering the singles matches in Ryder Cup history. 

Team USA reduced the margin by winning the final-day singles session 8.5–3.5, but the deficit remained, and Europe retained the trophy.

Fans at the Ryder Cup

The way the American fans behaved left a lasting dent on Team USA during the 2025 Ryder Cup and prompted former U.S. captain Tom Watson to issue an apology in which he said he was ashamed. 

European players, including Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, were subjected to repeated verbal abuse from spectators, with taunts that included profanity and references to personal matters such as McIlroy’s family and divorce. 

The situation also involved physical incidents, including a spectator throwing a beer that struck McIlroy’s wife, Erica, after glancing off her hat.

During the course of the game, some U.S. players, including Justin Thomas, were seen addressing the crowd and attempting to calm spectators instead of focusing entirely on their shots.

LIV Golf

LIV Golf’s stated goal was to modernize the sport and create a faster-paced format aimed at attracting new and younger audiences. But now LIV Golf's changing format to 72 holes and expanding the field to 57 players beginning with the 2026 season has raised eyebrows.

The changes bring the structure closer to the PGA Tour and DP World Tour formats and are intended to support the league’s efforts to become eligible for Official World Golf Ranking points.

Anything other incident you might like to add? Please feel free to do so in the comments!

Written by

Aditi Singh

Edited by

Joyita Das