Europe is heading into unprecedented territory at the 2025 Ryder Cup, with Luke Donald set to become the first man to lead the team in two Ryder Cups since the turn of the century.
Luke Donald did a fantastic job in Rome in 2023, as Europe regained the Ryder Cup at Marco Simone. In fact, he did such a brilliant job that the European players were immediately calling for Donald to stay on for Bethpage Black next year.
But where does the Englishman rank amongst the 11 captains the continent has had since the 2001 matches at The Belfry? Here is a look at those names based on the results and some of the comments made about their spells as captain.
All 11 European Ryder Cup captains since 2001 ranked
11. Sir Nick Faldo
Sir Nick Faldo did not oversee the heaviest European defeat of the 21st century by any means, but Valhalla proved to be an incredibly tough week for the six-time major champion. The press managed to capture a photo of Faldo holding a piece of paper which gave away his pairings ahead of the event. He also made some questionable selection decisions, including leaving many of his biggest names lower down the order on Sunday when Europe found themselves 9-7 behind to an American team which did not even have Tiger Woods. He was however, vindicated for picking Ian Poulter. The Englishman provided a glimpse of what was to come with an outstanding week in Kentucky.
10. Padraig Harrington
Some will argue that Padraig Harrington should be below Faldo on this list, and it is hard to disagree with that. Europe suffered a record 19-9 defeat at Whistling Straits, and for some time, it did appear that USA may be the first team to ever reach 20 points. However, Ian Poulter labelled the job Harrington did ‘incredible‘. And there were factors which played a big role in Europe’s defeat, including the fact that few European fans could even attend – Paul Casey even had to help out at one stage.
9. Darren Clarke
Like Faldo, Darren Clarke’s overall Ryder Cup legacy will not be tainted by his turn as captain. The defeat at Hazeltine was slightly larger than it had been in 2008, but the US were exceptional that week. Just two American players won less than two points in 2016. Europe meanwhile, had six rookies in their team, many of whom had barely played stateside previously. And it says everything that Matthew Fitzpatrick is the only one to have played in another Ryder Cup since then.
8. Colin Montgomerie
It feels incredibly harsh putting anyone in these next few positions, but the next eight names are all winning captains. So Colin Montgomerie goes in at eight because of how close the 2010 Ryder Cup proved to be. Admittedly, the weather threw all plans out of the window, and there was little need for inspired tactical decisions with all 12 players playing in two of the sessions to ensure it could even finish on Monday.
7. Sam Torrance
Sam Torrance was not handed an easy job ahead of the 2001 Ryder Cup. Not only was it the first Ryder Cup after 1999 and Brookline, but the matches were also pushed back a year due to the September 11th terrorist attacks. The late postponement meant that the decision was taken for the teams to be made up of those who initially qualified in 2001.
By the time the event did finally arrive, both Lee Westwood and Phillip Price were outside the world’s top 100, while Niclas Fasth and Sergio García were the only players whose world rankings improved – but only by a combined three places.
Nevertheless, Europe went on to win 15.5-12.5 against a US side which still included five of the world’s top 10.
6. Ian Woosnam
It is an extremely controversial call to put Ian Woosnam down in sixth. Europe matched their record victory when he oversaw an 18.5-9.5 win at The K Club in 2006. Thomas Bjorn was highly critical of Woosnam after missing out on a captain’s pick, to say the least – though that decision was vindicated. Picking Darren Clarke proved inspired on an emotional week for the Irishman. It was so nearly Clarke who sealed the winning point, which really would have been the icing on the cake.
5. Luke Donald
Perhaps this is also a contentious call. Luke Donald probably could not have done a lot more, and it is often overlooked that he was appointed a lot later than most after Henrik Stenson defected to LIV Golf in 2022. But the dominance of home teams in the last few Ryder Cups makes it harder to judge Donald’s tenure. The US were so poor over the first two days, so it was a little alarming that they still threatened a final day comeback. Nevertheless, Tommy Fleetwood labelled Donald a ‘phenomenal‘ captain. And he will immediately go to number one should he oversee a victory at Bethpage next year.
4. Thomas Bjorn
Rory McIlroy described Thomas Bjorn’s captaincy as ‘incredible‘, with Europe winning 17.5-10.5 at Le Golf National. Every single player delivered at least one win throughout the week as the American team simply could not get to grips with the French course. Bjorn seemed to take everything he had learned from his final appearance as a player four years earlier and use it to make his captaincy an overwhelming success.
3. Jose Maria Olazabal
Almost everything about the first two days at Medinah would have suggested that Jose Maria Olazabal was set to be a losing captain. Even when Ian Poulter made five birdies to finish on Saturday night, Europe still found themselves 10-6 down and in a hole. But the players were clearly prepared to run through a brick wall for Olazabal. Thomas Bjorn stated no-one has more passion for the Ryder Cup than Olazabal. And perhaps no other captain would have been able to inspire the Miracle at Medinah. It is an emotional choice putting him at three, but he more than played his part in one of the greatest weekends sport has ever seen.
2. Paul McGinley
If there was a captain who appeared to transform how Europe tackled the Ryder Cup in the 21st century, it is surely Paul McGinley. McGinley took a new approach to captaincy, leaving absolutely nothing to chance in the two years before the event. Rory McIlroy said the ‘fantastic‘ McGinley could not have done anymore. And the reward was a 16.5-11.5 win at Gleneagles. The American side were in a bit of disarray under Tom Watson, but from the outside, it appears that the impact of McGinley’s captaincy has continued to influence the European team throughout the last decade.
1. Bernhard Langer
One of the hardest tasks in elite golf is winning an away Ryder Cup, so the fact that Bernhard Langer not only won the 2004 Ryder Cup at Oakland Hills, but also by a record score of 18.5-9.5, must place the German at number one. The Europeans had one player in the world’s top 10 that week, but won four of the five sessions by at least two points. It is hard to see anyone matching Langer’s achievement anytime soon given the dominance of home teams.
Receive exclusive golf news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
