Ryder Cup Captains Give Thoughts on LIV Defects Coming On Board

LIV Golf’s involvement in the upcoming Ryder Cup has been a hot topic this cycle, and both captains for the 2025 match at Bethpage Black in New York weighed in on two Ryder Cup stalwarts who currently aren’t eligible.

Phil Mickelson was talked about as a potential captain for this event before he joined LIV in 2022. Now, U.S. team captain Keegan Bradley was asked if he thought Lefty might want an assistant captain’s spot.

Bradley said:

“To be honest, I haven’t gotten that far. I personally don’t think he’s really interested in doing it. I owe a lot to Phil, and I think he’s done so much for the American side of the Ryder Cup, but I’m not so sure he’s looking to come in as a vice-captain.”

When Bradley was selected as captain over the summer, Mickelson did express his support in the move.

With less than a year to go, here’s everything we learned about the 2025 Ryder Cup yesterday: https://t.co/6glZaAX80X pic.twitter.com/77bpkAHoFm

— Golf Digest (@GolfDigest) October 9, 2024

European team captain Luke Donald seemed more optimistic that Sergio Garcia – statistically the best European player in the history of the event – would take a spot, whether as a player or assistant.

Donald commented:

“We chatted on the phone a couple weeks ago. You know, he’s certainly very interested in [rejoining the DP World Tour]. He understands everything that’s involved, and again, the decision has to go to him, whether he’s prepared to do all that. But certainly, we’ve had that discussion, yes.”

Garcia resigned from the DP World Tour last year rather than pay fines after joining LIV, which made him ineligible for Ryder Cup participation.

Cover Image via Golfweek