Luke Donald will return to defend Europe’s Ryder Cup title as captain in Bethpage Black in 2025, and the Englishman has already recalled one of his trusty assistants
Luke Donald has reappointed vice-captain Edoardo Molinari to join him for Europe’s Ryder Cup defence in 2025 at Bethpage Black.
With the help of Molinari, Donald led Europe to an emphatic victory at Marco Simone last October, bouncing back from a record-breaking defeat at Whistling Straits two years earlier. On the back of last Autumn’s win, Donald was handed the reins to once again lead the Europeans in 2025, becoming the first captain since 2025 to take on back-to-back terms.
And he will be joined by another member of his class of 2023, after announcing he had brought vice-captain Molinari back on board in a bid to win just a second away Ryder Cup in 20 years when the action heads to New York.
READ MORE: Francesco Molinari sets Ryder Cup goal with Tommy Fleetwood keen on ‘Moliwood’ reunion
Following his return, the Italian said: “I’m very happy. It’s something that I’m very proud of and probably means I did a pretty decent job last time, so I cannot wait to help the team and Luke again in Bethpage and I’m really looking forward to it.
“Luke called me the very day he was named captain, a little before the official announcement, and said he really enjoyed working with me in Rome and would like my help again. We had another chat about a week later, maybe 30 or 40 minutes on the phone, chatted about a few things and he asked me and I said of course, I would happily do it all over again.
“I think Rory [McIlroy] put it best in the press conference after Rome, he said the most difficult thing in golf these days is to win an away Ryder Cup. It hasn’t been done in many years now, Luke was part of the team in Medinah, the last one that Europe won away, and hopefully we can produce something similar.”
For all the latest on news, politics, sports, and showbiz from the USA, go to The Mirror US .
Molinari’s role in the 2023 setup was an important one, with the Italian using his own analytics model to help the Europeans get over the line in his home country. Having this on board once more, played an important part in his reappointment for Donald.
“Edoardo is someone I have got to know very well over the last couple of years and he’s going to be a great addition again for the 2025 Ryder Cup,” Donald said. “I’ll lean heavily on him with the qualification criteria and then when we get close to the matches, how the team is forming, how their skillsets match to the golf course at Bethpage and whether they’re more foursomes-related pairings, fourballs-related players, and putting those pairings together.
“We spent a lot of time together over the last couple of years, we grew very close. He was extremely important to the whole journey and the process and he’ll be even more important on this away one. If we can create some history and try and win away from home, it’s going to be a very, very sweet four years together.”