Luke Donald has called on his European players to get off to a fast start and immediately turn the screw on the USA when the Ryder Cup gets under way on Friday.
Team Europe’s captain has opted to begin with the foursomes in Rome with the statistics showing his team habitually fare better in that format than the fourballs.
His players practised for the first time this week at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club this morning with Rory McIlroy going out in the first quartet with Shane Lowry, Tommy Fleetwood and Sepp Straka.
Donald downplayed the importance of his practice group selections, insisting they were more to do with their media commitments than any indications of how they might start on Friday.
And while he said he had a clear idea of his pairings for the opening morning, “nothing is set in stone”.
Europe are bidding to bounce back from a record defeat at Whistling Straits two years ago and continue their strong record on home soil having not lost in Europe for 30 years.
Looking ahead to the opening day, he said: “In Ryder Cups, you want to get off to a fast start and an early lead. The best way to go is to open with foursomes.
“We have the opportunity to send out four very strong pairings and grab an early lead. We do have a plan in place and that plan can be adjusted throughout the next few days.”
Donald once again reiterated his position that he expected all 12 players on his team to play at least once before the singles and that he did not currently plot for any player to compete in all five sessions such are the rigours of the course and the competition.
He said of a team made up of established figures like McIlroy and Fleetwood but with four rookies in their ranks: “Everyone is one of 12 this week. There is no hierarchy.”
Donald has made no secret of the fact that he has is leaning heavily on the statistics expertise of vice-captain and former Ryder Cup player Edoardo Molinari, which would be integral to how his side approaches each session.
Of that stats-based approach, he said: “Edoardo has been doing this for a number of years now. He is very smart, very switched on, he understands rrom a player standpoint too the pressure and everything that goes towards it.
“He knows that numbers can make a difference. We are relying on Edoardo and his numbers. We are not relying on them 100% to make all our decisions. Those decision come from instinct and gut as well as statistics. We’ve gathered stats on what’s worked and hasn’t worked around this golf course.”
Donald’s predecessor as Europe’s home captain, Thomas Bjorn, agreed with his players to get a tattoo should the continent prove successful at the end of that weekend at Le Golf National in Paris.
Of whether he might follow suit to Bjorn, who is acting as one of his five vice-captains this week, the Englishman said: “No guarantees on the tattoo. I certainly don’t have any on my body. I’m sure we can find a suitable way to celebrate if it goes our way on Sunday.”
