“I'm sure the 12 of us have a rough idea” - Rory McIlroy reveals European captain Luke Donald's ‘potential’ game plan for 2023 Ryder Cup
Rory McIlroy will make his seventh consecutive Ryder Cup appearance next week. He will play for the European team against a star-studded American team. The tournament is scheduled to start next Friday, September 29, and will have its finale on Sunday, October 1 in Rome Italy.
Ahead of the commencement of the tournament, McIlroy opened up about the potential pairing for the Day 1. In his recent interview with the media, the former World No.1 said that the team has a rough idea of pairing for the foursome and four-ball game of the first day at the Ryder Cup.
According to The Scotsman, McIlroy said:
“It's foursomes, so there's a lot that goes into it, golf balls etc and all that stuff. I'm sure the 12 of us have a rough idea of how the Friday is going to go.”
All of the European Ryder Cup team members have recently played at the 2023 BMW PGA Championship. For the first two rounds of the tournament, Rory McIlroy paired up with Ludvig Aberg and Viktor Hovland, while Tommy Fleetwood played alongside Shane Lowry and Sepp Straka.
The 2023 Masters winner Jon Rahm teed off with his European Ryder Cup teammates Nicolai Hojgaard and Tyrrell Hatton, while Justin Rose played with Matt Fitzpatrick and Robert MacIntyre. It would be interesting to see how Captain Luke Donald will pair them for the Ryder Cup.
Rory McIlroy also spoke about Luke Donald's captaincy in his interview. The 2023 Scottish Open winner believes that Donald is a fantastic captain. McIlroy said:
"I think he's been fantastic. He took the job in very weird circumstances, I guess, but he's taken it in his stride and he's been fantastic with me. I'm sure he's had a lot more interaction with some of the rookies and the new guys that are on the team. I feel at this point I can take care of myself (smiling) a little bit."
“If you speak to everyone we've all been really pleased with the job him and all of his team have done so far; the vice-captains are a big part of it and Ryder Cup Europe with all the backroom staff and everyone involved. It's been great so far," he added.
It is important to note that Jon Rahm, Rory McIlroy, Robert MacIntyre, Matt Fitzpatrick, Viktor Hovland, and Tyrrell Hatton auto-qualified for the Ryder Cup while Shane Lowry, Ludvig Aberg, Sepp Straka, Tommy Fleetwood, Nicolai Hojgaard and Justin Rose were selected by the captain.
Rory McIlroy's Ryder Cup record
McIlroy made his Ryder Cup debut in 2010 and will make his seventh consecutive appearance this year. His overall record at the event is 12-12-4 including 4-5-2 in four-ball, 5-5-1 in foursome and 3-2-1 in singles.
Here is Rory McIlroy's Ryder Cup record:
- Appearances: 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020
- Overall Record: 12-12-4
- Four-ball: 4-5-2
- Foursome: 5-5-1
- Singles: 3-2-1
McIlroy has been in good form this season. He has won two tournaments and has a good finish at the Major tournaments.