The calls for Jon Rahm and his LIV Golf colleagues to be allowed to represent Europe in the Ryder Cup have grown stronger with three-time captain Bernard Gallacher demanding a rule change
Three-time Ryder Cup captain Bernard Gallacher joined Rory McIlroy in calling for the rules to be changed so Jon Rahm and his LIV Golf colleagues can represent Europe at Bethpage in 2025.
Under the current rules, Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton are among the European stars ineligible to take part in the Ryder Cup. Europeans must be active members of the DP World Tour to be considered for selection, but the Legion XIII teammates were suspended after joining the breakaway LIV circuit ahead of the 2024 season.
Gallacher played in nine Ryder Cups and was captain three times in the 1990s, including the 1995 victory on American soil at Oak Hill in 1995. He told Bunkered Team Europe captain Luke Donald must have Rahm and Donald at his disposal in New York next year if they are to retain the trophy they won in glorious style in Rome in October.
“You’ve got to put your strongest team out there,” Gallacher said. “The main question last time was Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood but they were in their late forties. It’s not like Jon Rahm who’s 29 and is a US Open and Masters champion. Rory said he wouldn’t want to face the Americans without Jon Rahm and that says it all.
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“Tyrrell Hatton is a major winner ready to happen. Take Scottie Scheffler out of it, he’s as good as the players around. I’ve always felt he’s a guy who could win a major so you take him as well.
“You can’t not play the strongest team. The Ryder Cup would be very diminished without Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, for sure.”
Gallacher’s wish echoes the comments of McIlroy after Rahm quit the PGA Tour for a deal worth in the region of £400million. The Northern Irishman told Sky Sports he believed two-time major champion Rahm would be in Donald’s 12-strong team regardless of his move to LIV, such is the Spaniard’s importance to Europe’s chances.
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McIlroy said: “Jon is going to be in Bethpage in 2025 so, because of this decision, the tour are going to have to rewrite the rules for Ryder Cup eligibility, absolutely,” the Northern Irishman told Sky Sports News after the Spaniard’s LIV move.
“There’s no question about that. I certainly want Jon Rahm on the next Ryder Cup team. I’m going to miss competing against him week in and week out. He’s got so much talent, he’s so tenacious, he’s a great teammate in the Ryder Cup.”
Former Europe skipper Paul McGinley is on the Ryder Cup advisory board, and he said last month it is not a foregone conclusion that rules will be changed for LIV players to be made available for next year’s tournament.
“Under the current systems, [LIV players] are not going to be eligible,” McGinley told the Belfast Telegraph. “So the rules will have to be changed if they are to be played. But there are a lot of hurdles to jump to get to the place where they’re going to be eligible.
“You’ve got to balance making sure the Ryder Cup stays in this top echelon, with the best players playing, but also being fair to the players on both sides. So it’s a negotiating position.”