Wayne Reilly: Does Europe have an early Ryder Cup advantage after the BMW PGA Championship trip to Rome? | Golf News

Wayne “Radar” Reilly takes a look at the scouting mission to Europe ahead of the Ryder Cup to Rome, which players could impress at the BMW PGA Championship and why Luke Donald’s team could extend its home run over Team USA later this month, Live on Sky Sports Golf

The BMW PGA Championship is just a fantastic tournament and one of the best in the world, and this week’s event has added importance given that the Ryder Cup is right around the corner.

Luke Donald’s men arrive from their team trip to Marco Simone Golf Club, the venue for this year’s Ryder Cup, where they went for a practice round together just to make sure they know what awaits them, golf course-wise, later this month.

They’ll have had enough practice rounds there during the week of the event that I’m sure they could have seen virtual footage of the course instead, but team bonding will be key before they get back together again in a couple of weeks.

Luke Donald was joined by all of his players and all of Roma’s vice-captains

The fact that all 12 players were there was also important, as Team USA only had nine of their players there when they made a similar trip a few days earlier. This puts pressure on the three who didn’t make the trip and, in some ways, immediately makes it look like the Americans are half a point behind.

All the Europeans are now here at Wentworth and it will be huge, and it will also be great to see where they all go to Rome. We will likely see several members of the squad perform well, with one or two under the microscope if they play poorly.

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Shane Lowry hits back at critics who questioned his selection as captain for this year’s Ryder Cup and tells the junior players taking part to enjoy it and be themselves.

Last week Shane Lowry showed everyone that he deserves to be chosen as their captain, as he played well under the pressure of his National Open and finished the match very well. The sharks were circling, but this performance certainly silenced those critics.

I definitely expect Rory McIlroy to be back this week as he would have been disappointed with the way he ended his K Club career. I didn’t get to see him shoot anything over 68 on Sunday, although he went pear-shaped when he collapsed during his final round.

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Rory McIlroy’s hopes of winning the Irish Open are over after he made a triple bogey on the 16th hole in the final round.

McIlroy will return strong to the field where he has won before, although he did not always have the greatest records at Wentworth except for that win in 2014. He is now fully recovered from the back pain he suffered in the FedExCup. Playoffs will be tough to beat this week.

Point to prove to Meronk?

There was always someone who was going to miss the Ryder Cup, although you wouldn’t expect it to be someone who had won three National Opens over the past 15 months or so. Donald and his backroom staff will have looked at the stats and have their reasons for leaving Adrian Mironek off the field.

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Adrian Meronek has every right to be disappointed after not being named Ryder Cup captain, Rob Lee says.

I watched a segment of Mironk last week and I can see why they wouldn’t choose it now. His chipping was very average, something she’ll want to shoot when she gets to Marco Simone Golf Club later this month.

Do you want him to want to go up and down and eventually, if he’s not a great player, to take home the Ryder Cup? I’m not sure. From what I’ve seen, this is the work to be done, though perhaps he comes to Wentworth with a point to prove.

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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.

Rome in the mind of Europe

Europe’s world-class stars will shine on the DP World Tour this week at Wentworth, and it’s clear they’ll be ready for this event in their own right, as the BMW PGA Championship is huge, but all eyes are starting to turn to the Ryder Cup.

It’s taken a long time for the bubble to ripen, but the wait is almost over and I think the European team is looking really good. I like how you have a mix of rookies, returning players and experienced heads on the team, and I’m sure they will all play their part.

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

I think it will be exciting, and as long as it’s close, I think everyone will be happy, but I really think Europe can win it. It’s a European team determined to win back the trophy and everyone is in a good position, so I don’t see things going well.

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. Stream the PGA Tour, DP Tour, Ryder Cup and more now.