By Rahul Banerji
Omega Masters winner Ludvig Aberg and five other captain’s picks completed Europe’s lineup for the 2023 Ryder Cup with Luke Donald announcing his selections on Monday.
The Englishman added upcoming Swedish star Aberg to a mix of experienced and new faces as his six options to complete the 12-man team for the 44th edition of the trans-Atlantic tournament in Italy later this month.
The five others chosen by Donald and his posse of vice-captains were Englishmen Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood, Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark, Irishman Shane Lowry, and Austria’s Sepp Straka.
The six joined Matt Fitzpatrick, Tyrrell Hatton, Viktor Hovland, Robert MacIntyre, Rory McIlroy, and Jon Rahm who had qualified automatically for the contest at Rome’s Marco Simone Golf & Country Club from September 29 to October 1.
Aberg, Højgaard and Straka will make their Ryder Cup debut while Lowry, a controversial pick along with the Dane, will play in his first competition in Europe having been part of the team at Whistling Straits in the US in 2021.
Quick backlash
The choice of the out-of-form Lowry came under immediate fire as Donald overlooked the claims of Poland golfer Adrian Meronk, third in the European tour’s rankings and fifth in the Ryder Cup standings, also a two-time winner this season.
Following the announcement, Donald said: “I am delighted to announce Ludvig, Tommy, Nicolai, Shane, Justin and Sepp as part of Team Europe for the Ryder Cup, joining the six players who qualified automatically.
“We have great depth of talent in Europe, and that is perfectly illustrated with the team we now have confirmed for Rome, which is a strong blend of players with previous Ryder Cup experience combined with exciting and talented rookies.
“I’m really pleased to have this team now in place, and we are all looking forward to going to Rome later this month and trying to win back the Ryder Cup.”
Rising star Åberg made a statement on Sunday as he birdied four of his final five holes to claim the Omega European Masters in Switzerland – the final Team Europe qualifying event.
Big strides
It came a week after the world’s former top-ranked amateur tied for fourth place on his DP World (European) Tour event at the Czech Masters after making history as the PGA Tour’s first collegiate-topping qualifier.
Aberg tied for 25th place on his first start as a professional at the RBC Canadian Open in June and registered his first top ten at the John Deere Classic in July.
His selection was endorsed by Donald. “I have faith in Ludvig – I think he’ll be a generational player,” the Swede’s Ryder Cup captain gushed. “He’s going to be around for a long time and do amazing things.”
It will be Fleetwood’s third straight Ryder Cup, following a memorable debut in 2018 when he won four points out of five in Paris, while Rose returns for the first time since the 2018 win at Le Golf National five years ago.
Overall, it will be Rose’s sixth Ryder Cup appearance having previously featured in 2008, 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2018.
Europe’s 12 for Rome
Ludvig Aberg (Sweden). Age 23. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 0
Matt Fitzpatrick (England). Age 29. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 2 (2016, 2021)
Tommy Fleetwood (England) Age 32. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 2 (2018, 2021)
Tyrrell Hatton (England). Age 31. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 2 (2018, 2021)
Nicolai Højgaard (Denmark). Age 22. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 0
Viktor Hovland (Norway). Age 25. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 1 (2021)
Shane Lowry (Ireland). Age 36. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 1 (2021)
Robert MacIntyre (Scotland). Age 27. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 0
Rory McIlroy (Northern Ireland). Age 34. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 6 (2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2021)
Jon Rahm (Spain). Age 28. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 2 (2018, 2021)
Justin Rose (England) Age 43. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 5 (2008, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018)
Sepp Straka (Austria). Age 30. Previous Ryder Cup appearances: 0
Also read: Koepka, Thomas among expected US Ryder Cup team picks
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