Former PGA Tour player claims he’s ‘extremely disappointed’ not to have been made Ryder Cup vice-captain by Luke Donald

Add as preferred source on Google

The European team are currently enjoying a golf trip to the United States as part of their preparation for the Ryder Cup later this month.

The players and staff travelled to New York straight after the BMW PGA Championship concluded on Sunday evening.

While Keegan Bradley’s USA team looks strong, especially with Scottie Scheffler in top form, the Europeans will feel confident about retaining the trophy.

However, a key member of the 2023 Ryder Cup-winning team will not be with them at Bethpage Black after being snubbed by Luke Donald.

• READ MORE: Xander Schauffele gives his opinion on Europe’s Ryder Cup team and how much quality they have

Nicolas Colsaerts is ‘disappointed’ not to be a vice-captain at the Ryder Cup

Nicolas Colsaerts played in the 2012 Ryder Cup at Medinah, where the European team completed an epic comeback in the Sunday singles.

He then returned to the competition as one of Luke Donald’s four vice-captains at the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome.

Colsaerts had hoped to rejoin the team at Bethpage Black and was left “extremely disappointed” when Donald chose to go in another direction.

“Well, yeah, I was very disappointed because it’s a competition that I live for,” he explained. “It has basically been the only thing to get me out of bed for the last couple of years.

“I was extremely disappointed, but the captain is in charge. There are no hard feelings about the decision the captain made.

“Also, because of my respect for the competition and my respect for who is representing us every two years, I will always back them.

“Of course, I would have loved to be there, and more than that, I would have loved to help. It’s not really about living the week; it’s that I’m not able to help, which I’m disappointed and sad about.

“At the same time, I’m going for a couple of days, and I’m going to mingle a little bit with them early in the week. Then I’ll come and work with you guys on the build-up show on Saturday and Sunday, which I’m actually really excited about.

“I will always back the team; I will always wish them good luck; I will always think the world of the guys representing us. I hope that we keep the cup.”

Nicolas Colsaerts thinks Europe’s continuity will be helpful at Bethpage Black

In contrast to the United States, the European team have almost the same personnel at this Ryder Cup as the last.

The only changes are that Colsaerts is no longer a vice-captain, and Rasmus Hojgaard has replaced his twin brother Nicolai.

Colsaerts expects this to be an advantage at Bethpage Black, as the team looks to rally together against the boisterous New York crowd.

“Yeah. Everyone is comfortable with one another,” he said. “You go there with that familiar feeling. Everybody knows what they have to do.

“They say, ‘Never change a winning team,’ so it’s no coincidence. Also, the challenge is different because you’re going to have to work more closely because of the crowd that you’re going to play in front of.

“From what I know, because I’m not in the loop, it looks like they’re doing everything they need to do to be ready for next week.”