Europe suffered their biggest Ryder Cup defeat for 27 years at Valhalla — and for one player in particular it was not just the margin of defeat which was  hard to take.

Lee Westwood hit out at the "shameful" abuse hurled at him in Louisville after the United States completed a 16 1/2 to 11 1/2 victory — their first since 1999 and biggest winning margin since 1981.

"That's the only negative part of the week for me," said Westwood after his defeat to Ben Curtis in Sunday's singles, which came after the contest had already been settled with the home side winning the five and a half points they needed from the first eight matches.

"I have been abused from start to finish. Some of the stuff that's been said to me this week is shameful. To me that's not golf."

Westwood did not want to repeat some of the abuse but did reveal one was a "particularly nasty reference to my mother" and that his parents had also been woken by a phone call at 4.30am on Sunday.

"They were trying to ring me but called the wrong hotel and got the wrong Westwood," he added. "It really upset my dad's preparations for walking around the course!"

Trailing since the opening morning and 9-7 down going into the final day's singles, European captain Nick Faldo saw his gamble of leaving Ian Poulter, Westwood and Padraig Harrington until the last three singles matches backfire.

Paul Azinger's side secured the five and a half points they needed from the first eight matches with Jim Furyk securing the winning point by beating Miguel Angel Jimenez 2&1.