Luke Donald admits theres something unusual | Golf News

Luke Donald acknowledges the “very unusual” situation of having 11 members from his triumphant 2023 Ryder Cup workforce returning to defend Team Europe’s title at Bethpage, yet he is assured this will play to their benefit.

The European squad is marked by an extraordinary stage of consistency, with Denmark’s Rasmus Hojgaard being the only newcomer on Donald’s 12-man workforce, stepping in for his twin brother Nicolai, who contributed to Europe’s victory in Rome. The remaining 11 gamers are veterans of the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club triumph, which noticed the Europeans secure a decisive win.

With Donald at the helm once more as captain, the European workforce is banking on continuity as its strategy. The competitors tees off at Bethpage Black on Sep. 26, with Donald having revealed his captain’s picks on Monday, including Jon Rahm, Ludvig Aberg, and Shane Lowry.

Former world No. 1 Donald expressed his astonishment at the retention of the core group from his workforce, particularly when contrasted with the American aspect that will see only six returnees from Rome.

When queried if he ever imagined such consistency within the workforce, Donald responded: “No, absolutely not.”

He added: “I think history would be against that. There’s no time in the past where you even come close to that, maybe nine out of the 12 players might have played consecutive Ryder Cups. Very unusual.

“I feel there’s a lot of advantages to it, clearly, the continuity. I feel the gamers perceive how I work. I really feel like I’ve gained enough of their trust over this last two or three-year period.

“We’ll certainly draw from some of those experiences that we were able to be so good for what we experienced in Rome, but as I said Monday with the pick show, this is a different Ryder Cup.”

Yet, Donald is just not about to replicate his earlier ways precisely. He’s conscious that going through Keegan Bradley’s American squad on their home turf will pose distinctive hurdles. He added: “It’s a different challenge. It’s certainly a little bit of a goal of mine, not knowing that there was going to be 11 of 12, but to create something unique again.

“I do not need to just carry the whole lot that I introduced to Rome and do the same issues. Obviously, there are heaps of issues that I felt like labored very nicely, and those shall be carried out again, but there are new issues to look at and new challenges and new methods.

“Again, hopefully it’s still a Ryder Cup with different themes, different motivations for the players, and yeah, different strategies for success.”