Graeme McDowell is a player with serious experience in the Ryder Cup, having played in this prestigious competition four times. In addition to the fact that he was a participant, his winning ratio also delighted the public.
McDowell also tried his hand as a vice-captain in 2018, and again in 2021. However, by joining LIV Golf, his career took a completely different direction; the same as for all those who joined this project.
It was written that McDowell could be a candidate for captain or vice-captain, but joining LIV Golf clearly set a major obstacle to such a scenario.
However, in a conversation with Smylie Kaufman, the famous golfer admitted that he misses being part of the Ryder Cup.
McDowell wanted to be honest with himself and others, aware that on the LIV Tour they do not often have the opportunity to play on the European Tour.
He also pointed out that the trust and communication between the LIV golfers and the rest of the European team has weakened somewhat, and this certainly does not make his path any easier.
“I miss it. I miss being part of that ecosystem. I miss being part of the Ryder Cup culture,” McDowell said.
I get it, though. It wouldn’t make any sense to have a guy like me or [Ian] Poulter or [Lee] Westwood as a Ryder Cup vice captain because we really don’t spend enough time with these guys anymore.
Being on the LIV tour, we don’t get a chance to go back and play the European Tour very often. And there’s a huge amount of trust and communication that you need with these players to be able to have them trust you, to have them know that you’ve got their back.
As much as I would love to be there next week and be one of Luke’s vice captains, I also get it. I understand that there’s a lot more to it than just having a lot of experience and a lot of things to be able to tell the guys."- he said, as quoted by The Golfing Gazette.
European quality
On the other hand, Europeans can be proud that they still have a wide selection of players who will represent Europe and defend the colors of the continent.
Graeme McDowell and similar player profiles would certainly help the team, but in recent years Europe has produced a host of quality players and personalities who can play an important role in seven days at Bethpage Black
.
