European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald has confirmed his six captain's picks to complete his 12-man team for the upcoming clash against the United States later this month. The automatic qualifiers—Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatton, Robert MacIntyre and Matt Fitzpatrick—were joined by Donald's selections: Tommy Fleetwood, Shane Lowry, Justin Rose, and rookies Ludvig Aberg, Nicolai Hojgaard and Sepp Straka.
The most notable absentees are Ryder Cup stalwarts Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Lee Westwood, who have been mainstays in the European set-up for two decades. Their omission stems from their decision to join the controversial LIV Golf setup last summer, which has led to a series of sanctions and ultimately their loss of DP World Tour membership.
While joining LIV does not automatically ban a player from the Ryder Cup—as evidenced by Team USA including LIV star Brooks Koepka—the actions taken by Poulter, Garcia and Westwood have cost them their places. To qualify for Europe, players must hold DP World Tour membership, which the trio gave up earlier this year after a dispute with the tour.
In April, Sports Resolutions ruled that the DP World Tour could sanction players for joining LIV, leading to £100,000 fines and three-event bans for each rebel. After challenging the sanctions unsuccessfully, Poulter, Garcia, Westwood and Paul Casey handed in their DP World Tour memberships, effectively ending their Ryder Cup involvement not only as players but also as potential future vice-captains or captains.
This development has been a bitter blow for fans and the players themselves, who were considered certainties for leadership roles in future editions of the biennial contest.
