Luke Donald has left the door open to chasing an historic Ryder Cup hat-trick after Shane Lowry warned that anyone replacing the European captain would be face a task akin to following Sir Alex Ferguson into Manchester United.
Donald became the only the second man after Tony Jacklin in the Eighties to orchestrate back-to-back victories in the Cup with Europe’s dramatic 15-13 win over the US at Bethpage Black.
With Tiger Woods expected to lead the Americans at Ireland’s Adare Manor, Donald faces the tantalising dilemma of choosing to go out on a high, or chasing a three-peat, which hasn’t been achieved by a captain of any nationality in the modern era. The golfers of Team Europe, including Rory McIlroy and Jon Rahm, strongly favour the latter, though the rigours of the role have left Donald non-committal.
He said: ‘I’m super humbled again that they would even mention it. I have to sit down and think things through and what that would look like.
‘I won’t rule it out, but I want to enjoy this one. Could it be an easier decision than two years ago? I would say harder. I think some people obviously thought I was mad trying to do an away Ryder Cup after such a successful one in Rome.
‘Would that change how I was looked at as a captain if it went badly this week? I was happy to take that challenge on. I’ve done one home, I’ve done one way. I don’t feel there’s much more to prove. If I can help in any way, I would definitely consider it.’
Donald celebrates with Rory McIlroy by his side after Team Europe’s historic win on US soil
Despite admitting he is open to a return, Donald urged that he would need time to think about it
Luke Donald has refused to rule out captaining Team Europe for a third successive Ryder Cup
After the defections to LIV of a generation of would be-captains, from Ian Poulter to Lee Westwood and Sergio Garcia, the pool of logical replacements is thin.
One compelling option is Justin Rose, but at 45 he is playing some of the finest golf of his career and would want to avoid the chaos that befell Keegan Bradley in pitting captaincy against the urges to be on the course.
It is currently more likely that Rose will target editions from 2029 onwards unless his form nose dives dramatically in the six months that European bosses typically spend on this decision. Lowry, for one, thinks the next man up would encounter a formidable challenge to follow Donald.
He said: ‘He’s given up three years of his life and He’s put on a lot of work. It’ll be a big deal for him to take it on again. God help whoever is going to fill his shoes. It’s like trying to come in after Sir Alex Ferguson. We’ve seen how that’s gone over the last 12 years. I think it’ll be very tough shoes to fill.
‘We were just talking about it in the team room. I feel like the blueprint is there. And the tour has a great plan in place. You have to try and come in and put your own stamp on it. But it will be hard job to do.’
Meanwhile, former US captain Tom Watson has stridently condemned the US crowds for the vile behaviour that dominated the past week in New York.
In a post, the 76-year-old wrote: ‘I’d like to apologise for the rude and mean-spirited behaviour from our American crowd at Bethpage. As a former player, captain and as an American, I am ashamed of what happened.’
Lowry was caught in the crossfire of some of the most vicious abuse, especially in his two outings alongside McIlroy. He said: ‘Sunday was pretty tame for me in the end, but two days with Rory, it is something we’ll probably sit down and laugh about this week.
Tiger Woods is expected to lead the Americans at Ireland’s Adare Manor at the next Ryder Cup
Tom Watson took to X to apologise on behalf of USA, calling out fans’ ‘rude’ behaviour
‘What I can’t understand is, I look into the crowd and these people are the same age as my mum and dad. And they’ve probably got kids and grandkids. And they’re throwing out obscenities, I just don’t get it.
‘Look, we knew it was going to happen, we were ready for it. We did well to handle it the way we did, I think.’
