Stephen Gallacher aims to land first blow for Europe in Ryder Cup week in Rome

Stephen Gallacher is aiming to lead Europe to Junior Ryder Cup glory in Rome on the eve of the 44th Ryder Cup then become a fan and join the rest of Scotland in hoping that Bob MacIntyre gets his hands on the main prize three days later at Marco Simone Golf & Country Club.

Stephen Gallacher has been named captain of the European Junior Ryder Cup team.

“That’s exactly what we want - we want to start the week off on a positive for Europe,” declared Gallacher, who is excited about both his own assignment next week in the Italian capital as the home team’s captain for the junior version and also for MacIntyre becoming the first Scot to play in the Ryder Cup since Gallacher himself at Gleneagles in 2014.

The opening two days of the 11th Junior Ryder Cup will be played at Golf Nazionale before the last-day singles are held on the actual Ryder Cup course - the first time that has happened - on Thursday.

After seeing Paul Lawrie deprived of his opportunity to lead Europe’s top under-18 players - both boys and girls - into battle after the 2021 event in Wisconsin was cancelled due to the Covid pandemic, Gallacher was chuffed to get this chance to write another chapter in his family’s rich Ryder Cup history.

Stephen Gallacher is delighted to be Europe's Junior Ryder Cup captain for the event's 11th edition in Rome.

In addition to his own appearance against the Americans, his uncle Bernard played in the event no less than nine times before serving as Tony Jacklin’s vice captain then being captain himself on three occasions, including a memorable away win at Oak Hill in 1995.

“When [Ryder Cup Europe director] Guy Kinnings phoned me to ask if I wanted to be the captain, he said that he wanted to make this tournament be a bigger part of the Ryder Cup week and I get why they want to elevate it because, in 2014, we didn’t know it was going on at Blairgowrie,” said Gallacher. “He said he felt I was the best person for the job as the Ryder Cup has been in my family and my golf club while I now have my foundation as well, so I was passionate about both junior golf and the Ryder Cup.”

Rory McIlroy played in the Junior Ryder Cup in 2004 before stepping up to the main stage just six years later, while Nicolai Hojgaard is doing likewise on this occasion after being in the same team as his twin, Rasmus, for the last edition in France in 2018. Three of the US side for this Ryder Cup - Justin Thomas, Jordan Spieth and Sam Burns - are also Junior Ryder Cup products.

“Lexi Thompson and Rose Zhang as well on the women’s side in the Solheim Cup,” pointed out Gallacher. “When you think of that, you go ‘wow’ and that’s basically what I will be saying to the kids (Blairgowrie’s Connor Graham is facing the Americans for the second time in less than a month after his appearance for GB&I in the Walker Cup at St Andrews), ‘just enjoy it and it can be a stepping stone to either playing in the Ryder Cup or the Solheim Cup’. And for them to be playing on the Ryder Cup course on the Thursday on this occasion will give them a taste of what’s to come. They will learn about nerves and how they handle the occasion.”

MacIntyre was still in the amateur ranks when Gallacher, who secured one of Paul McGinley’s picks after a brilliant season that included a successful title defence in the Dubai Desert Classic, was part of a winning team over the Americans nine years ago.

“The thing for Bob is he’s won round there,” said Gallacher, referring to the Oban man’s victory in the DS Automobiles Italian Open just over a year ago, in reply to being asked what advice he’d offer to his compatriot as he now prepares to go into battle on the biggest stage by far in golf. “It’s just about dialling into those memories and forgetting the occasion this week.

“Your solace in the Ryder Cup is when the golf starts as it’s so busy and long until then as you are there on Monday and it doesn’t start until Friday - you just want it to start. He’ll go away and play his Playstation. He’s good at managing his time and you’ve just got to do exactly what got you in it. Ultimately you are part of a team, but you have to do your own thing.

“He’s there on merit, so he doesn’t need to do anything different. It’s the exact same (as football players playing a Cup Final in their heads four times before it actually kicks off ). You just get your gameplan, get your bags set up with the right clubs. It’s about managing the occasion and the good thing is that you know the other two guys are s****ing themselves as well - you’ve always got that to fall back on (laughing). But I think Bob will do great. I was delighted for him to qualify under his own steam - that was awesome.”

Gallacher, whose role in Italy could lead to him becoming a future Walker Cup captain following The R&A’s decision to break with tradition for the Curtis Cup by appointing Catriona Matthew as the GB& skipper for next year’s contest at Sunningdale, is hoping Europe can adopt the same team mentality for this match as the Gleneagles one. “That was McGinley’s thing,” said the 48-year-old. “He said to us ‘leave egos and everything else at the door as it’s just us in a bubble for a week and it’s us against the rest of the world’.

"Nothing negative was evident that week and Luke Donald has Thomas Bjorn and Jose Maria Olazbal - two winning captains - as vice captains and they will both be brilliant to bounce off. He’s also got Eddie Molinari’s stats and I think it’s a great dynamic.”