Ryder Cup 2016: Team Europe player-by-player guide
Who’s who in the battle at Hazeltine as Davis Love’s USA seek to end Europe’s winning streak in the Ryder Cup.
Europe
Captain: Darren Clarke (Northern Ireland)
Vice-captains: Thomas Bjorn (Denmark), Padraig Harrington (Republic of Ireland), Paul Lawrie (Scotland), Ian Poulter (England), Sam Torrance (Scotland)
Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland)
Age 27
World ranking 3
Ryder Cup appearances 2010, 2012, 2014
Ryder Cup record 6-4-4
PGA Tour wins 13
European Tour wins 13
Major wins US Open (2011), Open Championship (2014), PGA Championship (2012, 2014)
With only one win – the Irish Open – on either side of the Atlantic to his name this year before his timely victories in last weekend’s Tour Championship and theDeutsche Bank Championship earlier this month, McIlroy’s awful putting was a major source of concern for Europe. The 27-year-old’s recent wins came on the back of his decision to employ the putting guru Phil Kenyon, a move that seems to have sorted out his problem. Having relocated his mojo, he looks far more likely to play the role of lynchpin than liability in Hazeltine.
Rafa Cabrera Bello (Spain)
Age 32
World ranking 30
Ryder Cup appearances debut
Ryder Cup record 0-0-0
PGA Tour wins 0
European Tour wins 2
Major wins 0
A native of Gran Canaria, this Ryder Cup rookie recorded his maiden European Tour victory at the 2009 Austrian Open courtesy of a record-equalling final round of 60, while his biggest win came at the Dubai Desert Classic in 2012. Has not won a tournament since but made the team courtesy of five top-five finishes this year, which helped elevate him to seventh in the rankings. Cabrera Bello has played in all four majors, recording two top-25 finishes in 14 attempts. Could continue a long tradition of successful Spanish Ryder Cup pairings with his more experienced compatriot Sergio García.
Matthew Fitzpatrick (England)
Age 22
World ranking 44
Ryder Cup appearances debut
Ryder Cup record 0-0-0
PGA Tour wins 0
European Tour wins 2
Major wins 0
The ninth and final qualifier to earn his place through automatic qualification on the points list, Fitzpatrick is one of six rookies Clarke hopes will bring a “mixture of consistency and success” to the party. The 22-year-old from Sheffield turned professional after the 2014 US Open and immediately won his 2015 European Tour card. He went on to win that year’s British Masters at Woburn and followed up with the Nordea Masters in Sweden last June. Before that, he had finished a highly commendable tied-seventh in only his second Masters.
Justin Rose (England)
Age 36
World ranking 11
Ryder Cup appearances 2008, 2012, 2014
Ryder Cup record 9-3-2
PGA Tour wins 7
European Tour wins 9
Major wins US Open (2013)
One of the stars at Gleneagles in 2014, Rose remained undefeated and won four points out of five as Europe demolished the USA by five points. He has not enjoyed the best of seasons, but clearly savoured every minute of his victory in the Olympic tournament. The rowdy atmosphere on a Rio Olympic Games course packed with spectators unfamiliar with the protocols of golf-watching ought to serve as ideal preparation for the antics of some of the Ryder Cup’s American patrons.
Sergio Garcia (Spain)
Age 36
World ranking 12
Ryder Cup appearances 1999, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2012, 2014
Ryder Cup record 18-9-5
PGA Tour wins 9
European Tour wins 11
Major wins 0
One of Europe’s most experienced players, the Spaniard has notched up twice as many points for Europe as he has lost in seven Ryder Cups. García has had a quiet season, with a third-place at the Open de España and top-five finishes at the US Open and the Open among the highlights. García has complained about the barracking he receives when playing in the US, saying “it doesn’t feel like golf”. In the wake of the recent literary endeavours of Danny Willett’s brother, any hopes that Team USA’s fans might button it are likely to prove comically forlorn.
Henrik Stenson (Sweden)
Age 40
World ranking 5
Ryder Cup appearances 2006, 2008, 2014
Ryder Cup record 5-4-2
PGA Tour wins 5
European Tour wins 11
Major wins Open Championship (2016)
Stenson goes into his fourth Ryder Cup after a fine summer in which he won the BMW International Open in Germany before triumphing over Phil Mickelson at the Open on a final day of astonishingly golf from the two leaders. The 40-year-old from Gothenburg followed up with the silver medal at the Olympics, before withdrawing from The Barclays with a slight meniscus tear in his right knee. For now, Stenson will soldier on in the hope a troublesome joint that has required surgery in the past will not give him any problems.
Andy Sullivan (England)
Age 29
World ranking 50
Ryder Cup appearances debut
Ryder Cup record 0-0-0
PGA Tour wins 0
European Tour wins 3
Major wins 0
A former shelf-stacker nicknamed the Smiling Assassin, Sullivan won all three of his European Tour titles in 2015 but has had a quieter time of it this year. The 29-year-old from Nuneaton finished tied-12th at the Open in July and arrested a run of three consecutive missed cuts by finishing tied-20th in this month’s Italian Open.
Danny Willett (England)
Age 28
World ranking 10
Ryder Cup appearances debut
Ryder Cup record 0-0-0
PGA Tour wins 1
European Tour wins 5
Major wins Masters (2016)
Not many rookies tee off in the Ryder Cup as the Masters champion but this is the situation in which Willett will find himself following his heroics at Augusta in April. His experience in Georgia should serve him well, while second place in the Italian Open will have allayed fears about the indifferent performances that followed his major win and victory at the Dubai Desert Classic. “I feel I’ve achieved a good bit in golf and can draw on those experiences, go there and put some points on the board,” he says of Hazeltine.
Chris Wood (England)
Age 28
World ranking 32
Ryder Cup appearances debut
Ryder Cup record 0-0-0
PGA Tour wins 0
European Tour wins 3
Major wins 0
In a gamble that paid off, the 28-year-old from Bristol pulled out of the Open suffering from a neck injury in an attempt to keep his hopes of automatic qualification alive despite being told he was unlikely to receive a wildcard. Wood finished a comfortable fourth in the rankings in spite of missing most of July but has recently insisted his problems are behind him. Four top-10 finishes helped secure his berth for Hazeltine, the pick being his win at the BMW PGA Championship at the end of May. Questions remain over his fitness and form.
The captain’s picks
Lee Westwood (England)
Age 43
World ranking 46
Ryder Cup appearances 1997, 1999, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2014
Ryder Cup record 20-15-6
PGA Tour wins 2
European Tour wins 23
Major wins 0
While his close friendship with Clarke could have led to accusations of cronyism as far as his selection was concerned, Westwood’s vast Ryder Cup experience could prove invaluable in a team with six rookies. He will make his 10th consecutive appearance in the competition and he needs two points to equal Nick Faldo’s record as Europe’s top scorer on 25. “I would have liked to have played my way on but obviously I was very relieved and thrilled at the same time to get the pick,” said Westwood, who has had only two top-10 finishes this season.
Martin Kaymer (Germany)
Age 31
World ranking 48
Ryder Cup appearances 2010, 2012, 2014
Ryder Cup record 4-3-3
PGA Tour wins 3
European Tour wins 11
Major wins PGA Championship (2010), US Open (2014)
The man who holed the winning putt to close out the Miracle at Medinah four years ago, Kaymer has been selected as much for what he brings to the “team room and the dynamics of everything involved” as he does to the course, according to his captain. Kaymer has not won a tournament since the US Open in 2014 but has recorded six top-10 finishes in 18 starts on the European Tour this season. Decent form since April may have got Clarke’s antennae twitching, while his experience, proven coolness under pressure and record of never having finished on a losing team undoubtedly helped too.
Thomas Pieters (Belgium)
Age 24
World ranking 42
Ryder Cup appearances debut
Ryder Cup record 0-0-0
PGA Tour wins 0
European Tour wins 3
Major wins 0
Standing 6ft 5in in his socks, the lanky 24-year-old from Antwerp makes his Ryder Cup bow three years after turning professional. Few players are in better form: a fourth-place finish at the Olympics was followed by a runner-up spot at the Czech Masters and victory at the Made In Denmark, which earned him Clarke’s final wildcard slot at the expense of Scotland’s Russell Knox. “I have not seen a young player with as much talent since Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy,” said Clarke after backtracking on his pledge not to pick a rookie.
