Paul McGinley was brought into the Ryder Cup camp as a consultant, knowing eyes to augment skipper Luke Donald’s preparations for Bethpage Black. McGinley led the European team to victory in 2014 and is considered a details man, an early devotee of statistical analysis and bespoke planning.
Donald has taken that story on, invested heavily in stats, built data sets on all his players, the balls they use, their efficacy off the tee, around the greens, on the green, their favoured distances to the pin, shot shapes, launch angles, personalities, preferences, how they gel as a group and potential playing partners.
No European team has been this prepared for what Donald has identified as the toughest place to come, the raucous playground of irreverent New Yorkers, a volatile crowd more readily seen at baseball or the NFL than the country club. Bethpage is far from that, a public course that holds on to its community feel despite its championship credentials.
McGinley’s brief as a valued member of the European Tour’s Ryder Cup committee as well as a former captain, was to spot any gaps, play devil’s advocate, test Donald’s ideas with sympathetic rigour. As such McGinley was part of the advanced party that spent the early part of last week in New York, conducting a recce of the site and getting a feel for the environment.
These are the factors he identified as key to a European victory, a first on the road since the Miracle of Medinah 13 years ago.
Luke Donald spearheaded the Europeans to victory in 2023 (Photo: Getty)
The retention of Donald after the stunning victory in Rome was considered central to the team’s prospects.
“The first roll of the dice was to take back a captain who’d been there before,” McGinley said.
“We felt that it was a mistake going on the road with captains who haven’t done it before and trying to learn the job of being a captain as well as dealing with the challenges away from home.”
No country for young men
Whilst the American team have four in their squad, only Rasmus Hojgaard is new to the European team from Rome, replacing his brother Nicolai.
“The data has shown us that experience is an important part of being on the road, that rookies have a very low haul of points,” McGinley said.
“No matter how good a player they are, they have a small haul of points. It’s very difficult to play a first Ryder Cup in that environment. So experience was important.
“So we had to come up with qualification criteria that was going to give us the best chance of having experience, but also, honoured the DP World Tour. You need guys to have a chance coming off the DP World Tour as well.”
Donald has maintained a constant dialogue with the players throughout the qualification period. This has helped build a sense of belonging among the group as well as providing necessary information and focus as the event neared.
“We have come at this very differently from any away match before,” McGinley said.
“Just the detail that we’re going into, our dieticians and our doctors already being out there, meeting with people who are going to be making the food, sharing recipes, ideas.
“We have our own gyms coming. They’re going to be fitted in the locker room in the clubhouse as well as in the hotel. Our physios have been out as well. They were with us on a trip last week.”
All for one and one for all
Rasmus Hojgaard will make his Ryder Cup debut in New York (Photo: Getty)McGinley was pleased to discover that the old camaraderie born of humble roots on the European Tour retains its force.
“One of the things that I was interested to see was what kind of vibe these modern players would have compared to the vibe of my era,” he said.
“I can assure you, it was almost identical. There’s always laughter, there’s always banter, a bit of leg pulling.”
Matt Fitzpatrick was the last name out of the skipper’s hat, and the last to play himself into the team after a dispiriting spring in which he lost his game and confidence.
“Matt is a guy that has got a poor record,” McGinley said.
“All of us behind the scenes are pretty confident that over time that’s going to rebalance itself. And this [event] could be it. He’s a wonderful iron player.
“He’s got a new direction in terms of what he’s doing with his swing coach. He’s always been a very good putter. He’s a really good competitor. He’s won a US Amateur, so he’s a good match player. I can see him playing a bigger role in the team.”
Rors on the doors
McGinley identifies Rory McIlroy as the spiritual leader of this team, the man who took it to Patrick Cantlay and his caddie Joe LaCava during cap gate in Rome, and who four years ago swore to avenge the record defeat at Whistling Straits.
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“Rory revelled in two and a half days. He was on a high, having a craic, just being one of the guys, not Rory McIlroy the superstar. He was just around the guys, the first down for dinner, and for breakfast. He was in the middle of all the laughter, all the stories. You can see how much he loved being in that environment.
“The thing about Rory is he’s always been a volatile performer. Rory’s success has never been a straight line. There’s been loads of dips in his career, and then he comes roaring back. So that guy is a little bit more hit or miss than a Scottie Scheffler, who plays the percentages, is very detailed and conservative in his approach.
“So it’s no surprise that Scheffler is top of the world rankings. I don’t know if Rory will ever top the world rankings again because he doesn’t have the consistency that Scotty does. But one thing you can always say about Rory is when he’s got a point to prove he generally performs.”
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