Luke Donald might be one of Europe’s best modern day captains but even the best get it wrong sometimes.
Donald oversaw his European side race into a 3-1 lead at Bethpage Black before the afternoon session tightened up as the captains made changes.
Jon Rahm was the star of the show for Europe as he and Tyrrell Hatton secured the first point, before the Spaniard delivered again in the second part of the day alongside Sepp Straka.
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Captain Donald got his opening selections spot on, as Rahm and Hatton dovetailed, while Tommy Fleetwood and Rory McIlroy once again showed their class, with the score finishing 5.5 to 2.5 in the away side’s favour.
However, for all the good Donald has done, he was left to rue one major error in the afternoon fourballs.
Luke Donald’s big Ryder Cup error
Luke Donald has had so much praise since leading Europe to glory in Rome in 2023 and rightly so.
His leadership, demeanour, and decision-making are all top-notch and it’s little wonder Europe have had the success they’ve had.
However, even the greats make mistakes and Donald’s mistake came in the afternoon session.
In a bid to get all his players some action before the weekend, Donald thrust rookie Rasmus Hojgaard into proceedings.
But while throwing Hojgaard in wasn’t the mistake in itself, the decision to put him in with Ludvig Aberg might just have been the big problem.
Despite Aberg’s class, it’s worth remembering that it was only in 2023 that he was the rookie.
To put the pressure on his shoulders of being able to play his own game and hold Hojgaard’s hand proved a massive mistake.
After beating Scottie Scheffler and Russell Henley 5&3 in the opening session, Aberg and Hojgaard then had a nightmare, losing 6&5 to Cam Young and Justin Thomas.
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Luke Donald’s gamble backfires at Bethpage Black
There were eyebrows raised anyway when it was announced that Aberg and Hojgaard were paired and in the end, their inexperience showed.
These are two young players with immense talent and there was obviously some sound decision making and reasoning behind Donald’s choice.
However, in the end, it backfired and while Europe hold the advantage going into Saturday, this could well prove a costly mistake come Sunday.
It’s unlikely we will see Hojgaard again until Sunday, which is a shame. But ultimately, there is a Ryder Cup to be won and Saturday could be the make-or-break session
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