Tommy Fleetwood drops hint about next Ryder Cup captain
Tommy Fleetwood has revealed who he thinks are the 'obvious' candidates to succeed Luke Donald as the European Ryder Cup captain.
Tommy Fleetwood says Francesco Molinari and Justin Rose are the two 'obvious' candidates to succeed Luke Donald as the European Ryder Cup captain.
Donald will lead the blue and gold for the final time in New York next September.
The Englishman, a former World No.1, is bidding to become the first man since Tony Jacklin in 1985 to lead Team Europe to back-to-back Ryder Cup wins.
After the biennial joust at Bethpage Black, the Ryder Cup will head to Ireland in 2027.
It was previously assumed that given the stage the honour of leading the team could've gone to Graeme McDowell.
But McDowell's hopes of being a Ryder Cup captain, along with fellow LIV golfers Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood, are dwindling by the day.
Rory McIlroy recently made the contention that the breakaway tour players aren't around enough anymore to be considered for the role.
Fleetwood reckons that former Open winner Molinari and former U.S. Open champion Rose are the two leading candidates.
Rose and Molinari will lead respective teams in the Team Cup next January.
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"Justin and Fran are obvious candidates for future Ryder Cup captains," Fleetwood said, who previously captain Great Britain and Ireland at the Team Cup.
"I wouldn't consider myself at a stage in my career where I would be seen as ready to captain a team, but it was an unbelievable experience and a massive honour to captain the GB&I side.
"I feel like I did learn a lot, but I believe Justin will be far more prepared than I was and far more ready for it."
He added: "I do now think the ecosystem of Team Europe is to probably expect a captain of this team event to move on to being a captain in the Ryder Cup.
"It will be great moving forward, and hopefully, it can carry on."
1979–2023 European Ryder Cup captains
1979: John Jacobs
1981: John Jacobs
1983: Tony Jacklin
1985: Tony Jacklin
1987: Tony Jacklin
1989: Tony Jacklin
1991: Bernard Gallacher
1993: Bernard Gallacher
1995: Bernard Gallacher
1997: Seve Ballesteros
1999: Mark James
2002: Sam Torrance
2004: Bernhard Langer
2006: Ian Woosnam
2008: Nick Faldo
2010: Colin Montgomerie
2012: José María Olazábal
2014: Paul McGinley
2016: Darren Clarke
2018: Thomas Bjørn
2021: Pádraig Harrington
2023: Luke Donald
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