Since 1979 there have been 22 Ryder Cups and only six have been won by the away team. What’s more, the last away win was 13 years ago at Medinah. On paper, this makes a European victory seem less likely, but the continent’s best teams have always defied the odds. If Luke Donald is looking for an inspirational team talk, well, here it is.
Golf Monthly editor Neil Tappin sat down with Luke Donald, the 2025 European Ryder Cup captain, to discuss this year’s contest in New York and how things might differ away from home
Is winning an away Ryder Cup one of the toughest challenges in sport?
It is very difficult, but we’ve had some success in the past. It hasn’t happened too often, but going back to 1987, we have won away four times, so it is possible and I think that’s very motivating for me. Lately, yes, you would say it’s pretty hard.
Do you think it has become harder to win away from home?
Maybe a little bit with the course set-ups and the rivalry that’s really taken form, but you can trace that back to the early 1990s – 1991 was when the Americans, after losing for the first time at home in ’87, realised they needed to be a bit more partisan to their home team.
It’s got a bit more rowdy now when you’re away. It’s a difficult environment and I think that’s the challenge, isn’t it? That’s the thing you have to overcome. We see it in all sports. You feel more comfortable at home; you feel the energy of the crowd. But we’re going to have to block some of that out.
Having played on an away-winning team, what does it take to succeed?
I think the major thing is the crowd – how you deal with it, how you reframe it and how you deal with certain difficult things thrown at you. That takes some conversations with the team and understanding how they’re going to deal with it individually.
Everyone’s different, but if we have a pretty good plan about that, I think we can just go and play golf. New York, even though it’s going to be rowdy, is quite a cultural melting pot, so we will have some fans out there. You’ve got to listen for those ones and try to tune out the boos and the home team support.
Does ‘hatgate’, courtesy of Patrick Cantlay, add a little extra spice to the Ryder Cup this time round?
This isn’t anything new. There are lots of instances where these things spill over. It’s a high, high-pressure situation. You really care about winning and at times your temper, and your judgment, can be tested. There’s nothing wrong with that – it just shows how much they care about it. You don’t want it to step over a line. You want it to be fair.
People shouting on their backswing or getting really personal with insults, that’s a little bit over the line. That’s against the spirit of what we are trying to do. You want to win fairly, but there’s nothing wrong with a bit of spirit.
I think that’s what the fans actually look forward to. I’ll be ready for it. I look forward to it. I doubt it’ll be a quiet, non-drama Ryder Cup, so you’ve got to be ready for that.
What makes a great Ryder Cup player?
The mindset of never giving a hole away easily. Making your opponent earn it. For me, I just felt like I was so annoying with my short game. If someone thought I was out of position, I would get up and down, hole a chip or hole a long putt and suddenly that momentum shifted.
THE PERFECT MATCH: LUKE DONALD, ROLEX AND THE RYDER CUP...
“It’s been almost 20 years for me with Rolex, which is important. I’ve had some long-standing relationships in my career, Mizuno being another about the same time. I love the family feel and, obviously, Rolex has been a very important supporter of golf for 60 years.
“They do things in a great way; they just want you to represent the brand and be authentic. One of the fun things about the Ryder Cup is the watch presentation. As captain, you have a conversation with Rolex to try and figure out the right model to give to the players. I’m currently wearing one from 2010 at Celtic Manor. Every time I look at it, it’s not just a watch that tells the time, it also tells the story of the week.
“When we present those watches, that’s the message I give to the players. It’s a very nice memento, obviously, but every time you look at your watch, it brings back all these great memories.”
