Six things learned from Team Cup by Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald
One player stood out in battle to be rookie in New York while LIV Golf star also shone in UAE
“Absolute waste of time this tournament, no atmosphere, no audience, just a few people hovering around.” That was the view of one person on social media about the Team Cup, but, with all due respect, it was off the mark.
Yes, last week’s event at Abu Dhabi Golf Club was sparse in terms of spectators and, therefore, lacked atmosphere, but its main purpose had nothing to do with that and that, of course, is about helping Europe when it comes to the Ryder Cup later in the year.
The reintroduction of such an event, it was called the Hero Cup then, two years ago came after a record defeat at Whistling Straits in 2021 and six players who were involved in it went on to be part of a winning side in the Ryder Cup in Rome.
As was the case for the Hero Cup, the Team Cup, won convincingly by Great Britain and Ireland, was overseen by European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald and here are six things he probably learned on this occasion.
LIV Golf’s Tyrrell Hatton is committed to European cause
The Englishman, who has played in the last three encounters against the Americans, made himself eligible for this year’s contest by retaining his DP World Tour membership with a flurry of appearances on the circuit late last season. He still has a hearing pending over appealed sanctions imposed on him by the DP World Tour for playing in LIV Golf events without an official release, but his commitment to being involved in the UAE was a clear indication on his part that he wants to be on the team for Bethgate Black and the fact he picked up three-and-a-half points, including a singles success against Thorbjorn Olesen, showed exactly what he brings to the table in a team environment.
Frenchman Matthieu Pavon looks like rookie material
After landing his breakthrough DP World Tour victory in October 2023, Pavon then became a PGA Tour winner as well when landing the Farmers Insurance Open just under a year ago. Teaming up with compatriot Romain Langasque on each occasion, he picked up three points out of three in the one fourball and two foursomes sessions before losing to Tommy Fleetwood, who covered the first seven holes in seven under, in the singles. By all accounts, Pavon’s statistics over the three days were very impressive indeed and, helped by the fact he’ll be playing in most of the big events this reason on the PGA Tour, he has given himself a great chance of becoming the first Frenchman to play in a Ryder Cup since Victor Dubuisson at Gleneagles in 2014.
Tommy Fleetwood is the man to deliver winning points
The Englishman clinched Europe’s win in the Ryder Cup in Rome and emulated the feat for Great Britain and Ireland on this occasion. “Obviously slightly different circumstances this time,” admitted Fleetwood with a smile of sending the European fans crazy with delight at Marco Simone Golf Club as he got the home team over the line by guaranteeing he couldn’t lose to Rickie Fowler, “but feels great.” The 33-year-old is a certainty to make a fourth successive Ryder Cup appearance in New York and, though he was sent out second last in the singles in 2023, he looked equally comfortable as the first man out on Sunday.
Justin Rose looks tailormade to be a future Ryder Cup captain
It seems likely that the Englishman will be at the helm for the 2027 match at Adare Manor in Ireland and, on this evidence, the Europeans have another impressive captain waiting in the wings. Rose, of course, will be determined to make a seventh playing appearance at Bethpage Black, where his vast experience could be a real asset to Donald, but, in leading Great Britain and Ireland to a thumping 17-8 victory, he showed real captaincy credentials.
No big need to tweak things behind the scenes
Donald did a brilliant job shaping his backroom team in Rome and, by the looks of things, it will be along similar lines for this year’s match. Edoardo Molinari, who proved a statistical genius for the match in Italy and will be aiming to deliver on that front once again, and 2018-winning captain Thomas Bjorn are the only vice captains confirmed so far. However, Nicolas Colsaerts was involved in Abu Dhabi and looks likely to be someone Donald will be appointing again in an official capacity while Jose Maria Olazabal, the ‘Miracle at Medinah’ captain in 2012, looked as though he was revelling once more in a support role and it would be no real surprise if he was a vice captain again.
The future is bright for Europe beyond this Ryder Cup
As was the case with the Hero Cup, last week’s match wasn’t just about the Ryder Cup coming up. Even if the likes of Matteo Manassero, Matthew Jordan and LIV Golf-linked Tom McKibbin don’t make the European team this time around, they’ve had a taste of what it’s like to be in an environment that is geared towards letting players know the importance of the Ryder Cup from a European perspective, helped by the likes of Olazabal and fellow winning captain Sam Torrance sharing their experiences of the biennial contest to allow the new generation of players to show the same passion for it when their time comes around.
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