The speculation around the question of whom will be Europe’s next Ryder Cup captain intensified last week following after The Telegraph reported that Justin Rose, the 45-year-old Englishman believed by many to be the favorite for the role, was set to rule himself out of consideration so that he can focus on making an eighth Ryder Cup team as a player at Ireland’s Adare Manor in 2027.
Justin Rose
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Citing unnamed sources, the report rated Luke Donald’s chances of returning for a third captaincy “less than 50-50.” Donald, who led Europe to victory in Rome in 2023 and at Bethpage Black in September, addressed the matter in an interview with Golfweek after Thursday’s first round of the PGA Tour’s World Wide Technology Championship in Mexico.
“I feel like I have climbed the mountain so to speak and I certainly have nothing left to prove,” the 47-year-old Englishman said. “I love what it represents and am thankful for the opportunity to do it. If I do it again I will probably put a hard cut that I won’t do it a fourth time. I do want to play the Champions tour in two years. Timing-wise, it does work. I have to talk to my family and whether it takes too much time away from them.”
Meanwhile, multiple reports have mentioned Italy’s Francesco Molinari and his brother, Edoardo, as leading candidates for the job. Both served as vice captains at this year’s Ryder Cup, with Edoardo serving as the team’s statistical mastermind. And Graeme McDowell, the 46-year-old Northern Irishman, expressed his desire to be considered in a recent interview with the website Bunkered, though he acknowledged the thorny politics around his candidacy given that he plays in the LIV Golf league. READ MORE
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Speaking about the Ryder Cup ahead of last week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship, Rory McIlroy said PGA of America CEO Derek Sprague sent him a personal apology for the fan abuse he and his wife, Erica, were subjected to at Bethpage Black.
“I got a lovely email from Derek Sprague apologizing,” McIlroy said in an interview with BBC Sport. “Erica worked with Derek at the PGA of America back in the day, so we know Derek and his wife pretty well. He couldn’t have been more gracious or apologetic and he wrote us a lovely letter, which we really appreciated.”
Sprague had said last month that he planned to issue an apology to McIlroy and his wife. READ MORE
Saudi Arabia finally has a deal with an American golf tour under an agreement announced last Wednesday for the LPGA Tour to co-sanction a PIF Global Series event at Shadow Creek in Las Vegas next spring.
The Aramco Championship will be held from April 2-5 with 120 players from the LPGA and the Ladies European Tour. The $4 million purse rates among the highest outside the majors.
It’s the first big announcement for Craig Kessler, who took over as LPGA commissioner in July. He said the Aramco Championship “reflects exactly where we’re headed in building the global schedule for our tour.”
“We often talk about routing, courses and purses, and this event checks every box,” Kessler said. “We also recognize that partnerships like this – built on the LET's long-standing collaboration with Golf Saudi and PIF – can help strengthen the women’s game on a global scale and elevate opportunities for our athletes.”
The Aramco Championship is one of five tournaments that make up the series, which the Public Investment Fund rebranded this year while raising the prize money. READ MORE
Tap-Ins
Sepp Straka, a two-time PGA Tour winner this season and member of Europe’s winning Ryder Cup team, withdrew from last week’s Abu Dhabi HSBC Championship and this week’s DP World Tour Championship to be with his family as his 2-month-old son, Thomas, was to leave the hospital for the first time since birth. READ MORE
Highly touted junior player Gianna Clemente has turned professional and will compete for an LPGA card at the final stage of the tour’s Q-Series next month, she told Golf Channel last Wednesday. The LPGA has granted the 17-year-old Floridian an age waiver to compete. READ MORE
The LPGA’s Black Desert Championship, played for the first time last May, will not return to the tour’s schedule in 2026. Black Desert Resort will instead transition to being an LPGA official marketing partner, the tour said in a statement. READ MORE
The 2027 Hanwha Lifeplus International Crown will be played at Lake Merced Golf Club in San Francisco, the LPGA announced. READ MORE
Peter Jacobsen was named the recipient of the 2025 Bruno Award, which is presented annually by the PGA Tour Champions Tournament Association to an individual or organization who has made outstanding contributions to the Champions tour. READ MORE
Compiled by Mike Cullity
