“We are going to be underdogs, but I have full faith in my team” - Luke Donald eager to continue America’s dismal Ryder Cup record in Europe
The American team is the favorite to win the Ryder Cup, according to most of the sites specialized in odds analysis. European captain Luke Donald knows this and even admits it. But even so, Donald is confident that his team can turn that projection around.
Luke Donald gave an interview to the Chipping Forecast podcast where he admitted that he is aware of what the forecasts say for the Ryder Cup. Also, the European captain said that they are preparing to wrest back the trophy and that he has "full faith" in his team.
This is what Luke Donald said:
"The bookies aren’t usually too wrong in their suggestions. They are going to be betting favourites. We are going to be underdogs, we know that but I have full faith in my team."
He added:
“But there will be ways we have advantages over the US and I will paint that pretty clear to them because they will be on a mission to get that cup back. The gap has closed; 12 months ago it was definitely in the US favour but I am proud and happy with the players who have stood up to show some great form in the months leading up to this Ryder Cup."
The United States and the Ryder Cup in Europe
The American team has won 27 of the 43 editions of the Ryder Cup (14 defeats, two draws). For this reason, its long losing streak on European soil is very striking.
Of their total Ryder Cup victories, the United States has won just 10 on European courses. The last time the Americans won on the European continent was at The Belfry, Warwickshire, England in 2002.
That American team was led by Paul Alzinger, Fred Couples and Tom Kites. The Europeans included, among others, world number one Nick Faldo, Bernhard Langer and Ian Woosnam.
Since 2002, there have been 13 editions of the event, six of them in Europe. The Europeans have won all the ones they have hosted, in addition to those of 1995, 2004 and 2012. That is, nine victories for Europe and only four for the United States during this period.
The United States were defeated by huge margins, as was the case in the 2004 (18.5 to 9.5), 2006 (18.5 to 9.5) and 2018 (17.5 to 10.5) editions. It is fair to say that the Americans have also returned some of those blows, as in the 2021 edition when they defeated Europe by 19 points to nine.
These data are even more impressive if we take into account that in those editions, the United States presented true "dream teams", and even, in several of them, had two of the greatest players of all time, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.