Rory McIlroy as European Ryder Cup captain? 'Hopefully that's not in 2027'
There aren’t many guarantees in golf, though Rory McIlroy one day captaining the European Ryder Cup team is probably one of them.
The 36-year-old just helped the European team win for the second time on foreign soil, topping the Americans 15-13 at Bethpage Black in New York. It was a tumultuous week for the World No. 2, who went 3-1-1 but faced unruly crowds throughout the week, a storyline that took over the 45th biennial bout.
Nevertheless, McIlroy was one of the stars in his eighth Ryder Cup appearance, and he’s bound to be on the team for years to come. But when he’s done playing for Team Europe, he’s a shoo-in to be captain.
“Sometime, yes. Certainly not 2027. I hope I’m still playing at that point,” McIlroy said Wednesday ahead of the DP World India Championship. “But yeah, I would love to be The European Team Captain at some point. But that will be beyond my playing days, or at least when my playing days are coming to an end and I’m not good enough to make the team or I make way for the new generation to come along.
“Hopefully that’s not in 2027. Hopefully I’m still good enough to play and put points on the board for Europe.”
McIlroy has been vocal in support of Luke Donald, who became the second European captain with two Ryder Cup victories (Tony Jacklin), to return for a third tenure at Adare Manor in Ireland come 2027.
If anyone has had a front-row seat to see the time and preparation that goes into leading a team at the Ryder Cup, it’s McIlroy. And for someone still in his prime and not looking to slow down any time soon, it’s hard to envision he will be able to dedicate the time to the captaincy at this stage of his career.
Down the road, it’s a different story.
“I would love to be a captain one day, and I feel very fortunate that I’ve had a front row seat playing under some of the best captains in history in the Ryder Cup,” McIlroy said. “I think what Luke Donald has done the last two Ryder Cups has revolutionized the captaincy within Europe. And I feel like Paul McGinley in Gleneagles in 2014, he was a wonderful captain, and I learned a lot from him. And there’s been wonderful captains between them, as well. All of them have been wonderful.
“But I think the time and the effort and the dedication that Luke Donald has put into the last four years, it’s been absolutely amazing. He has 100 percent respect of the entire team and everyone that’s worked for him and all be behind him. If I can be nearly as good as a captain as Luke Donald, I’ll have done a good job. So hopefully one day in the future, but I’d say not until the mid-2030s, hopefully, if I can keep playing well.”
This article originally appeared on Golfweek: Rory McIlroy discusses his interest in future Ryder Cup captaincy
