COMETH THE HOUR

Rory Mcllroy is Europe's top-ranked player heading into the Ryder Cup. Can he be a talisman once again, and has he now established himself as the best male player the continent has ever produced?

- Fergus Bisset

In 2009, Rory Mcllroy said of the Ryder Cup: “It’s not a huge goal of mine. It’s not that important an event for me. It’s an exhibition at the end of the day. Obviously, I'll try my best for the team, but I’m not going to be running around fist pumping.” How things change.

Fast forward to tears of disappointment at Whistling Straits in 2021, then tears of jubilation at Marco Simone, and it’s clear the Ryder Cup is now a hugely important focus within the Northern Irishman’s career.

In his younger days, Mcllroy was prone to saying the odd thing ‘off the cuff’. But when asked to read those quotes again in a video before the 2023 Ryder Cup, he replied: “Who said that?... I said that in my naivety as a young, swashbuckling lad. I have now been part of the Ryder Cup a lot, and what those quotes are couldn’t be further from the truth.”

Mcllroy will be a crucial member of Luke Donald’s team at Bethpage Black as Europe looks to win the Ryder Cup on US soil for the first time since the Miracle at Medinah in 2012. He will be playing in his eighth straight Ryder Cup and will have multiple roles at this year’s event. Predominantly, he will want to lead from the front as Europe's best player, replicating his superb performance at Marco Simone last time out, where he secured four points from five matches.

Secondly, he will also need to be a leader within the team, offering guidance, inspiration and support to those with less experience of the great biennial event.

He will also be a spokesperson for the European side, as he always is. The press will want his opinions and he will need to stand up and say the right things at the right times. If Mcllroy can be that inspiration and contribute significantly to Europe winning again Stateside, it will be another feather in his already highly feather-filled cap.