Ryder Cup: Rory McIlroy happy to take on ‘big brother’ role for Luke Donald’s European team in Rome | Golf News

Rory McIlroy has appeared in every Ryder Cup since his debut for Team Europe in 2010; All 12 members of Luke Donald’s team attended a group trip to Marco Simone Golf Club on Monday ahead of the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth

Rory McIlroy is delighted to take on the ‘big brother’ role for Team Europe this month and insists there will be no hierarchy within the Ryder Cup squad in Rome.

McIlroy will make his seventh consecutive appearance in the biennial competition from September 29 to October 1 at Marco Simone GC, live on Sky Sports, as Europe will look to avenge their record 19-9 loss to Team USA in 2021.

The former world number one has played in more Ryder Cups than any player participating in this year’s competition and is the third oldest member of Luke Donald’s squad, behind only Shane Lowry and Justin Rose, making McIlroy one of the standouts in the squad. European team.

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Team Europe captain Luke Donald explains his Ryder Cup picks and how he plans to reclaim the famous trophy.

The four-time major winner joined Donald, the rest of the squad and vice-captains on a scouting mission to the Ryder Cup venue on Monday, with the trip getting McIlroy even more excited about representing Team Europe in the coming weeks.

“It was amazing,” McIlroy said of the Rome trip in his pre-tournament press conference at the BMW PGA Championship. “I’m kind of surprised, this is the first time we’ve really done this.

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All of Europe’s Ryder Cup stars compete in the BMW PGA Championship, the flagship event on the DP World Tour calendar, with extended coverage live on Sky Sports Golf.

“There are a few new faces in the team and I thought it was a great exercise in terms of getting to know each other a little better. I had the opportunity to play with Ludwig [Åberg] For the first time on Monday, which I was excited about.

“I told him I’d been looking forward to this for a while. Not that I needed to get any more excited about the upcoming Ryder Cup, but that trip definitely got the juices flowing.”

The European squad has seen a major change since 2021, with five members of that squad joining the LIV Golf League, while McIlroy hopes the team’s journey will help integrate less experienced players into the Ryder Cup fold.

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The 12-man Ryder Cup squad has been completed led by Team Europe captain Luke Donald – meet the golfers looking to take home the trophy.

“I felt like all 12 of us were on the same level, and there wasn’t any kind of hierarchy in the team,” McIlroy added. “I remember the 2012 Ryder Cup, I went there, No. 1 player in the world, I’ve won two major titles in the last two years, and I still didn’t feel like I could speak up in the team room.

“It doesn’t feel like that, which I think is really good. Just making the new players as comfortable as possible. For me, that’s been a really nice thing the last couple of days.

“I don’t think any of these people need their hand held in any way. I’d rather have them look at me than look at me. That’s how I wish they would see me that way. We all do.” Part of a team of 12 players, we are all trying to do our bit, and certainly no one is more important than anyone else.

“I think just trying to make a really conscious effort among the vice-captains and the captains and the veteran players on the team is to be inclusive and really make sure the youngsters and juniors are really involved in everything we do.”

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Team Europe captain Luke Donald reveals why he selected Ludwig Aberg as one of his six selections to complete his Ryder Cup squad.

McIlroy and Jon Rahm are the highest-ranked players in the European squad, with the Spaniard also downplaying the roles and assigning them to the more experienced players in Donald’s squad.

“On this team, we’re all the same,” Rahm said. “It’s all for one and one for all. That’s kind of what it is. We’re all there to achieve the same goal. We’re all part of the same team, and yeah, there’s no – what you’ve done before and what you’ve done before and what you might do next.” Week, it doesn’t matter at all.

“I can just talk to the rookies if they need any advice and tell them how I handled my first Ryder Cup and my experience. But when you have a leader like Luke [Donald] Who has had great success in Ryder Cups, and vice captains with more experiences and stories than most of us combined, I think there is very little I can say to make a significant impact.

Watch the BMW PGA Championship all week live on Sky Sports. Live coverage begins on Thursday with highlights from 8.30am before full coverage from midday on Sky Sports Golf.

Live coverage of the opening day of the Ryder Cup begins on Friday 29 September from 6am on Sky Sports Golf, while live programming begins on Monday 25 September. Stream the PGA Tour, DP Tour, Ryder Cup and more with NOW.