TEEING OFF FLYING THE FLAG The Ryder Cup brings together some of the best golfers in the world from the two great dominions of the world game, the US and Europe. As the proud Official Private Jet Provider of the PGA TOUR since 2014, NetJets has a close connection to the Cup and the teams, once confirmed, will both be replete with NetJets Ambassadors. Among them will be World No 1 Scottie Scheffler, joined by the likes of Brooks Koepka, Patrick Cantlay, Max Homa, Dustin Johnson, Jordan Spieth, Sam Burns, Collin Morikawa, Justin Thomas and Bryson DeChambeau. Another NetJets Ambassador David Love III will be one of Zach Johnson’s vice captains. For Europe, NetJets Ambassadors Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatton, Matt Fitzpatrick, Justin Rose, Shane Lowry and Tommy Fleetwood will be hoping to feature. VALERIO PENNICINO/GETTY IMAGES will serve him well in a role whose importance has probably been a little overstated in the folklore of the matches over the years. He has so far named Thomas Bjørn, Nicolas Colsaerts and stats specialist Edoardo Molinari as vice-captains, and will no doubt announce more nearer the time, but he will have to play a clever game when it comes to picking his pairings given the lack of experience among potentially half of his team, and will be hoping that his star talents bring their “A” games to Rome if he is to avoid the ignominy of being the first European captain to lose on home soil in 30 years. USA: ZACH JOHNSON Like Donald, US captain Johnson doesn’t come across as a natural leader, with the 47-year-old from Iowa having quietly gone about his career without causing so much of a ripple, barring his two major victories. Despite his quiet demeanour, he clearly possesses a steely core and has surrounded himself with former captains, including Davis Love III and Steve Stricker, along with Fred Couples, who are all too familiar with the cut and thrust of the Ryder Cup. A five-time Ryder Cupper himself, Johnson was on the losing side four times, although he at least ended on a high when part of the winning team at Hazeltine in 2016. Unlike Donald, he has the problem of not knowing how many – or few – ex- LIV golfers he will have in his team, and how divisive it might be to pick them as wildcards over players who have stayed loyal to the PGA TOUR. He will be under immense pressure to choose the latter, despite the recently announced merger, but if the result goes the wrong way and the likes of Dustin Johnson are excluded, questions will surely be asked down the line and for many years to come. LEADING OPINIONS ON THE CHALLENGES OF MARCO SIMONE … Zach Johnson: “It’s got a lot of everything – up, down, left, right, short, long. It will be one of the hilliest courses I’ve stepped foot on and will be a true test of fitness and skill. It’s all of Augusta and more. The greens aren’t nearly as big or as undulating, but as far as approach play is concerned, it’s remarkable how many yards up and down shots play.” Luke Donald: “It’s going to be a great match-play course – there’s some exciting holes, a few drivable par fours; some great par threes, and, if the matches come down to 18, there’s another spectacular par five down the hill with water by the green that will test nerve and skill. The elevation changes will also give crowds incredible viewpoints to see some amazing golf.” ON THE CHANCES OF VICTORY … Luke Donald: “I fully expect us to be underdogs, despite that home percentage of wins over the last 30 years. We’re going to have a bunch of established, world-class players along with a new generation of players playing well, and I think that creates an exciting mix to have at my disposal. And giving myself more picks will give me an opportunity to pick the best in-form team, which hasn’t always been the case.” Zach Johnson: “Europe are not the underdogs. They are on their home soil, they will have the majority of the fans rooting for them. We’re too used to being told we’re “strong on paper” to come into this thinking we’re the better team. But we’ll go there with what I believe will be our strongest team and do our best to retain the cup.” rydercup.com IN PLAY The second at Marco Simone 54 NetJets
