European captain Luke Donald significantly bolstered his standing following the recently concluded Ryder Cup. He outperformed his rival in various aspects traditionally linked to American sports culture. Firstly, he made no effort to conceal that he based his team selections and leaned on the data meticulously prepared for him by a statistics enthusiast, his vice-captain Edoardo Molinari, throughout the competition week.
Later, he has recognized that calling Chema Olazábal was a great success because he inspired his boys by sharing his experiences in past Ryders.
Tiger Woods, Ryder Cup
In short, the Englishman Donald was inspiring, meticulous and decisive in making decisions.
For example, he was personally waiting for Jon Rahm on the same green where he finished his Foursome duel on Saturday to tell him that he was not going to play in the afternoon, that he had had three very tough matches and he was going to give him a rest.
He was already thinking about putting ‘Rahmbo’ in Sunday’s first duel. The former world number 1 tried to be as detailed as he could. His captaincy has left a very good taste in everyone’s mouth, to the point that there is talk of his continuity for the 2025 edition at Bethpage Black.
“2025? That’s something I’d have to sit down and think about. Of course I’d consider it. I might as well leave him as the winning captain and not risk my legacy. New York is going to be a cauldron. Those fans are too passionate. The atmosphere is going to be very difficult and of course, if I were to go there and win, it would be a great achievement,” Donald noted on Sky Sports.
In fact, the same players from Europe, before receiving the cup, sang: “Two more years.” Luke’s continuity seems quite feasible. “It will be difficult for anyone to measure up to him, he has set the bar very high,” commented Rahm.
On the other hand, in the United States it is time to think about a new leadership project. The first name that has come to everyone’s mind is Tiger Woods. Former U.S. captain Paul Azinger, who led the American team to a victory at Valhalla in 2008, floated Tiger’s name as a replacement for Zach Johnson.
“Eldrick [Woods]? I think he should be the next captain. In fact, being Beth Page Black, on the other side there should be Sergio Garcia.” Azinger obviously linked the great duel between Tiger and Sergio at the 2002 US Open, although his opinion on the European election has no influence.
Regarding Woods’ candidacy, which is already being talked about in the American press, right now it is one of the most serious due to several factors. On the one hand, Mickelson, another possible candidate, is totally removed from the PGA Tour, where all the members of the current Team USA play except Koepka (this also now penalizes García).
On the other hand, Tigre will be almost 50 years old in 2025 and it is unlikely that he will be part of the team as a player. In 2019, the Californian captained the USA in the Presidents Cup, so he already knows what it’s like to lead a team. They compete for the position with the great American golf legend, Stewart Cink, Fred Couples and Jim Furyk
