Ryder Cup Retribution: Stenson Stripped of Captaincy

The next Ryder Cup is scheduled to be held between September 25 and October 1, 2023, at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome, Italy, but it appears that drama is already kicking up.

Only 4 months after being named European Team Captain, Henrik Stenson has been stripped of his captaincy by Ryder Cup Europe.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Ryder Cup Europe (@rydercupteameurope)

The decision stems from Stenson’s expected but not yet official announcement that he will be joining LIV Golf.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Ryder Cup Europe (@rydercupteameurope)

While we certainly aren’t privy to the background conversations, negotiations, and rumors circulating between Ryder Cup Europe, LIV Golf, and Stenson and his team, the decision seems a bit premature given that Stenson has not yet confirmed and announced his defection, which may be a foregone conclusion now that he’s been punished.

However, the early, arguably punitive, decision, however, may not be too surprising when you take into account the identities of the Ryder Cup Europe governing body: European Tour Group (a/k/a DP World Tour) (60%), of the PGA of Great Britain and Ireland (20%) and the Confederation of Professional Golf (20%).  And given their strong connection and relationship with the PGA TOUR, which has taken every opportunity to villainize LIV Golf, it’s not too surprising that they’ve taken another opportunity to use fear and force to discourage golfers from leaving their tour for someone else’s.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Henrik Stenson (@henrikstenson)

The irony here is that a significant number of the anticipated Ryder Cup Europe team members—Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia (who is currently the all-time leading Ryder Cup points scorer), and Paul Casey—are all competing with LIV Golf. While there are certainly numerous other high-level golfers, such as Matt Fitzpatrick, Jon Rahm, and Viktor Hovland, who will stand up to fill the void, there is no questioning that the European team will look very different when it steps up to the first tee in fall 2023.

Edoardo Molinari, brother to Major champion Francesco Molinari, was named Vice Captain of the Ryder Cup Europe 2023 by Stenson and, presumably, will take on the mantle of leadership. But maybe if there’s some (selfish) silver lining to this story, it’s that the USA team’s chance to win on foreign soil—something that hasn’t been done since 1993—is slowly increasing with each defection.

Cover Image Via Golf Channel