While Europe appear to now face one of the toughest tasks in elite golf ahead of an away Ryder Cup at Bethpage, Luke Donald’s men showed in Rome that they have all kinds of potential.
Europe were absolutely dominant over the first three sessions at Marco Simone. Luke Donald‘s side did not lose a single match on Friday, while they boasted a 9.5-2.5 lead after Saturday morning.
And while USA did manage to fight back and create some drama, Europe managed to regain the Ryder Cup in a way which sent a statement out ahead of 2025 at Bethpage. Rory McIlroy has rarely been better in the event than he was in 2023, while Jon Rahm, Tommy Fleetwood, Viktor Hovland and Tyrrell Hatton all picked up at least three points.
Six of Europe’s players were under the age of 30 when they teed it up in Rome. Meanwhile, two of Luke Donald’s team were outside the top 75 in the world rankings, with Nicolai Hojgaard and Ludvig Aberg receiving captain’s picks.
Luke Donald suggests Europe may have another Rory McIlroy
Aberg was barely on the radar of anyone when qualification for 2023 started. In fact, he only made his first appearance as a professional in June 2023. Nevertheless, the decision was vindicated with Aberg and Hovland beating Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka by a record 9&7 margin on Saturday in Italy.
Donald was asked on the No Laying Up Podcast about how he learned about Aberg. It is clear that vice-captain Edoardo Molinari was a long-time admirer of the Swede, having played alongside him at the Dubai Desert Classic at the start of the year. He went on to suggest that he saw for himself how Aberg had the kind of potential not seen for some time.
“[He] got a spot in the Dubai Desert Classic. And I think through two rounds, he was fourth or something. And just on a golf course that’s a very difficult driving golf course and 320 down the middle every time,” he said.
“You play enough with people to understand when there’s something a little bit different about that player. I certainly saw that I played in the Dunhill with Rory in 2007. And just like, oh my God, this is different.
“This isn’t like every other person, you know. And Ludvig certainly showed that. And I wanted to see it for myself.”
It does appear that not everyone was convinced about Molinari’s claims initially. Speaking on Una Famiglia, Paul McGinley shared how baffling it was to hear the Italian laud a youngster who had not even turned professional.
“Way back in January, I remember Edoardo Molinari saying, ‘hey guys, there’s a young kid in college in America. He’s going to turn pro when he graduates. If this guy is half as good as the stats I’m seeing, don’t dismiss him as being a Ryder Cup player’. And we all kind of laughed at Edoardo and said, ‘yeah right, he’s going to turn pro and within two months he’s going to be a Ryder Cup player? I don’t think so’,” he said.
“With Sergio Garcia coming into the team way back in the late 1990s in the same way, a guy like that coming in, a special talent, a generational talent, why not take a chance?”
How the Ryder Cup was a turning point for Scottie Scheffler as Ludvig Aberg is tipped for superstardom
The 2021 Ryder Cup certainly seemed to be a turning point in the career of Scottie Scheffler. He was the lowest ranked player in the American qualification standings who then featured at Whistling Straits, while he was also awaiting his first PGA Tour win at the time.
But clearly, everyone knows what happened next with Scheffler.
It is too soon to say whether Aberg can follow in his footsteps. But given the potential he has shown – including in the demolition of Scheffler in Rome – the 25-year-old looks to have everything needed to ensure that he has a phenomenal future ahead.
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