Had Team Europe been so inclined, they could have saved some money on the pre-Ryder Cup photoshoot. Captain Luke Donald and his players arrived at Bethpage Black at the start of last week for a practice trip and posed with the trophy they won so comprehensively in Rome two years ago. To say there was a familiar feel to things would be an understatement.
Donald is once again Europe’s captain and there is just a single change to the team, one that a brief glance at the team photo does not immediately reveal. Rasmus Hojgaard will make his Ryder Cup debut, just as twin Nicolai did in 2023.
Continuity has been the theme for the Europeans ever since Donald was named as their first repeat captain since 1995 after masterminding a 16.5-11.5 victory in Rome. However, even the former world No1 has been surprised when assembling his team at just how little has changed in the past two years.
“It is extraordinary, and even more extraordinary that we just switched one brother for another,” Donald said. “We’ve changed one initial from Rome, I never imagined that it would be like that.”
The players know how to win but only Justin Rose and Rory McIlroy have done so away from home. That remarkable 2012 triumph in Medinah is one of only two times Europe have won on the road this century. Team USA have not done so since 1993.
It is one of sport’s toughest challenges but, when the action starts on Friday, Europe appear better placed for away success than they have been in recent memory.
McIlroy tells fans to bring it on
“Two more years” was the chant from the European players after their victory in Rome, imploring Donald to lead them at Bethpage. The job was always going to be Donald’s if he wanted it and after a few weeks of reflection he signed up for another cycle.
The victory in Rome was characterised by attention to key details. Donald wanted his players to make fast starts so in practice had them play three-hole matches. There was an added emphasis on data, led by the analytics work of Edoardo Molinari who is again a vice-captain this week and will be crucial in devising pairings.
A different gameplan is required away from home and much of the focus has been on preparing the European dozen for the crowds they will face. The New York support is expected to be boisterous and unforgiving.
Shane Lowry revealed his wife got “dog’s abuse” at Whistling Straits in 2021, while Matt Fitzpatrick’s parents will not be attending this week due to their experiences four years ago.
Donald, therefore, has had his players using virtual reality headsets to replicate the abuse they could receive.
McIlroy explained: “It is to simulate the sights and sounds. That’s the stuff that we are going to have to deal with. It’s better to try to desensitise yourself as much as possible before you get in there. You can get them to say whatever you want them to say. You can go as close to the bone as you like.”
Players were asked how much abuse they wanted to hear — McIlroy told them to “go as far as you want”.
At the Team Cup in January, where Great Britain and Ireland went up against Continental Europe, Donald ordered PA speakers to be set up. “U-S-A, U-S-A” chants were blasted out, as well as baby noises and coughs. On one par three, an American comedian was hired to hurl insults.
“He actually said that I looked like a bouncer for Tesco’s,” Tyrrell Hatton revealed afterwards. “It was a pretty loose December to be fair, so I’ll let that one slide.”
The players’ WhatsApp group from 2023 has been active over the past two years and Donald has been keen to keep the close-knit feel. There was a team dinner at Wentworth earlier this month with caddies and wives also invited, and the players then flew out for a practice trip at Bethpage at the start of last week.
While those have all been welcomed, there is the ongoing feeling that the camaraderie is just an innate advantage that the Europeans have.
“I think America have tried too hard to become a team, whereas Europe is a bit more natural and organic, and I think it comes from deeper roots in a way,” Rose said.
A new era for Team USA
Cue discussions over money. All 12 American golfers and captain Keegan Bradley will be paid £370,000 ($500,000), with £222,000 ($300,000) of that having to go to charity. Team Europe will not be paid, after Donald raised the issue with his players and was unanimously told they had no desire to follow suit. “I would pay for the privilege to play in the Ryder Cup,” McIlroy said.
Donald has also stirred the pot in recent days by suggesting the insistence on being paid could backfire for the Americans at an event where ticket prices start at £555 ($750). “We all know how high the ticket prices are,” the European captain said. “If the US players are getting paid and they aren’t performing, the New Yorkers could make them know about it.”
Bradley has done his best to foster a more selfless, united locker room. The 39-year-old is ranked 13th in the world after a stellar season but opted against selecting himself as a player-captain, a decision that should provide the team extra motivation to deliver for him.
It is a very different USA contingent this time. Only six who played in Rome do so again this week. Russell Henley is the world No3 and will hit his first shots as a Ryder Cup player at 36. Ben Griffin and JJ Spaun have had brilliant seasons, but how will they cope in this environment?
It is a new era for the team, without the likes of Jordan Spieth, Brooks Koepka and Rickie Fowler. That could prove to be a positive, a necessary refresh and evolution. Unlike in Rome, the right players are on the team, but there are questions to answer. With several bigger names out of form, the rookies must step up.
Schauffele and Cantlay have so often been the banker pairing, yet they lost both foursomes matches in Rome. Cantlay hasn’t won a tournament for three years and Schauffele has had a relatively quiet season after a wrist injury. Justin Thomas and Collin Morikawa have struggled too.
Scottie Scheffler serves as a fairly decent comfort blanket, the world No1 arriving off the back of a sixth win in 2025. It is not hard to imagine him finishing up on Sunday with a 5-0-0 record and should he do so, the USA will have taken a big step towards reclaiming the Cup.
The American playbook
After joining the Europe team for their practice trip, Paul McGinley provided his insight on the Bethpage set-up. “The rough is not as it would be in a US PGA or a US Open that has been played there before,” the 2014-winning captain said.
“It’s right out of the American playbook. And they’ve been very successful, so why change [what they do], which is generally rough, not too thick, greens quite fast, and trying to encourage a fast pace of low scoring.”
There will be no shocks for the Europeans, who played 27 holes together last week before being given time off to prepare separately. Some are staying in New York, others are tuning up elsewhere. Robert MacIntyre spent the weekend at Aronimink and Shinnecock Hills, the venues for next year’s PGA Championship and US Open.
Avoiding surprises has been fundamental to the preparation for Donald, who wants his players ready for all scenarios. That has informed his team selection, where experience was prioritised, and so too the vice-captain picks.
Jose Maria Olazabal is once again on the team, with the Spaniard the last successful European captain away from home. He led the Miracle in Medinah in 2012 and has experienced everything the Ryder Cup has to offer over 40 years.
For all there is positivity over Europe’s chances, the size of the task should not be underestimated. Four years ago, Team USA romped to a 19-9 win. Medinah aside, Europe have not got within five points of an away win since 2004.
Hovland and Rahm are not playing as well as they were two years ago. Fitzpatrick’s Ryder Cup record of 1-7-0 gives him a point to prove, while Sepp Straka has not teed it up since finishing last by four shots at the Tour Championship.
Come Friday, though, form and records will be put to the side. It will come down to drives and putts, nerves and bottle. Donald’s Italian job was executed superbly but perfection is needed this week in New York, where dreams are made and big lights can inspire. No spotlight burns brighter than the Ryder Cup.
