Has Team Europe Strengthened Since Whistling Straits?

Team Europe dominated Team USA at Le Golf National, Paris, in 2018, so hopes were high going into the ‘away’ fixture at Whistling Straits in 2021. These hopes did not last long for Pádraig Harrington’s team as they fell to a record-equalling defeat of 19-9.

Harrington’s captain’s picks in 2021 of Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia shows that his approach was to stick with the tried and tested method rather than experiment. Conversely, the 2021 Ryder Cup was a changing of the guard for Team USA who introduced 6 rookies and fielded their youngest ever team.

So, has Team Europe changed tact?

Team Europe: Retained Players

• Rory McIlroy
• Jon Rahm
• Viktor Hovland
• Tyrrell Hatton
• Matthew Fitzpatrick
• Tommy Fleetwood
• Shane Lowry

This group contains 6 of the world’s 13 best-ranked players (with Lowry coming in at 34th) and a cumulative 8 major championships. Fleetwood and Lowry are the only 2 who…