Former Ryder Cup Vice Captain rips European decision to leave out star
Former Ryder Cup Vice Captain rips Team Europe’s decision to omit Polish star.
Was Adrian Meronk robbed? According to one former US Ryder Cup Vice Captain, he was.
The Polish star was one of the unlucky few who found themselves on the outside looking in after European Team Captain Luke Donald announced his captain’s picks on Monday.
The 30-year-old Meronk had put together an impressive resume during the Ryder Cup qualification campaign which included two wins worldwide since last year. Meronk followed his win at the Horizon Irish Open in July last year, where he became the first Polish player to win on the DP World Tour, with an additional two victories in quick succession as he made a strong push to make the European Ryder Cup Team.
He picked up his second win on the DP World Tour last December at the ISPS HANDA Australian Open, before adding a third at the site of the upcoming Ryder Cup, Marco Simone Golf Club, in May this year at the DS Automobiles Italian Open.
Rory McIlroy, Jon Rahm, Viktor Hovland, Tyrrell Hatton, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Robert MacIntyre earned the six automatic spots on the European Ryder Cup Team courtesy of both World Points and European Points they had accrued during the qualifying period.
That left Donald with six spots to announce on Monday which he awarded to Ryder Cup stalwarts, Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose, Shane Lowry, who will be making a second appearance in the historic competition this time around, and Sepp Straka, Nicolai Hojgaard, and Ludvig Aberg; all three of whom will be making their Ryder Cup debut in Rome later this month.
Young phenom Ludvig Aberg, who only turned professional over the summer, may very well have bumped Adrian Meronk from the team following the young Swede’s astonishing come-from-behind win at the Omega European Masters last weekend. Aberg had previously caught the eye on several occasions and it didn’t take long for a player who was one of the best collegiate golfers of all time to pick up his first win at the professional level.
The unlucky Meronk narrowly missed out on an automatic place on the European points list, finishing 5th, and ended the qualification period ranked 11th in World points.
Former U.S. Vice Captain Rips Meronk’s Ryder Cup Omission.
Paul Goydos, a former Vice Captain on the 2010 US Ryder Cup Team, took issue with the Polish player’s omission from the European Team on Monday.
@AdrianMeronk not making the European Ryder Cup is a crime. He’s 3rd on the race to Dubai and he won on the course that hosting.
— Paul Goydos (@PaulGoydosPGA) September 4, 2023
Goydos makes a valid case for Meronk who recorded eight finishes of T17 or better in 2023 in addition to his three victories across the globe since last year. He also hasn’t shied away from voicing his opinion on matters of late, including when he quickly took to social media to torch tour leadership earlier this year as well.
Next. Why Europe will win the Ryder Cup. dark
This is sure to sting for Adrian Meronk for quite some time, but to his credit, the three-time DP World Tour winner demonstrated exceptional class upon learning the difficult news that he hadn’t been selected by Captain Luke Donald for this year’s Ryder Cup.
For Meronk, the aim will now be to make the European Team in 2025 when Bethpage Black will play host to the Ryder Cup, and who knows, he may just make more history for his country when the historic competition heads to New York in a couple of years’ time.