Luke Donald Warns About Possible Reaction of American Fans at the Ryder Cup
The captain of the European Ryder Cup team, Luke Donald, has expressed his concern about the possible reaction of American fans towards the Team USA players, due to the payments they will receive for participating in the event. Donald commented that the atmosphere at Bethpage Black, in Farmingdale, New York, could become tense. “We all know how high ticket prices are, and it will be an expensive trip for a family of four. If the US players are paid a stipend, or whatever, and they are not performing, New Yorkers could let them know,” he stated. The players and the captain of Team USA will each receive $500,000 this week, of which $300,000 must be donated to charities. On the other hand, the European team will not receive any personal financial compensation.Donald added that the European team values the meaning of the Ryder Cup and the purpose of inspiring the next generation. The money raised goes to support the European Tour Group and the development of grassroots golf. “We talk a lot about this, we are here to inspire the next generation. This money goes to good things. Hopefully, it will help future Ryder Cup players become great players. I think our purpose, why we play the Ryder Cup, is quite strong and that’s enough for that week.” Donald concluded by saying that money is not a motivation for the European team. “For these guys, a couple of hundred thousand dollars is not much money in the grand scheme of things. Those Ryder Cup weeks are the best weeks. There’s a lot more to them. We certainly don’t need any motivation or monetary reward to get us going.” The Ryder Cup will start on Friday.I wanted to get ahead of this when I first heard about it last year and it seemed like it was going to happen. I contacted the 12 players in Rome to find out how they felt. Their voices are important. They all said, ‘We haven’t even considered playing for money in that event’
Luke Donald
