New Delhi – Rory McIlroy has expressed his desire to captain the European Ryder Cup team in the future, but not before the mid-2030s.
McIlroy is in India this week to participate in his first tournament, following his outstanding performance in the recent Ryder Cup, where Europe defeated the United States in New York.
The 36-year-old Northern Irish golfer has participated in the last eight Ryder Cups and, currently number 2 in the world and Masters champion, plans to remain on the team for several more years, especially in the 2027 edition to be held in Ireland.
However, on Wednesday, McIlroy expressed his interest in leading the team as captain at some point, rather than just being a star player.
Absolutely, I would love to be captain someday and I feel very fortunate to have had a front-row seat playing under some of the best Ryder Cup captains in history.
McIlroy mentioned Paul McGinley, winning captain in 2014, and Luke Donald, who led Europe in the last two competitions.
Despite this, he added that his goal is to take the lead in the captaincy “in the mid-2030s, hopefully, if I can keep playing well”.
During the competition at Bethpage Black, McIlroy was booed by American spectators. The golfer considers this behavior regrettable, especially since Europe managed to be the first team to win a Ryder Cup away from home since 2012.
McIlroy highlighted the excellent performance of the European team during the first two days, in the foursomes and fourballs formats.
McIlroy has shown interest in competing in India for some time, seeking to expand his schedule internationally. In November, he will participate in Abu Dhabi and in the European Tour season-ending tournament in Dubai, as well as the Australian Open in December.
McIlroy has expressed that he enjoys the journey more and playing in front of new audiences.
Furthermore, the golfer, who declares himself a cricket fanatic, regretted not being able to attend a match during his stay in India.
“I would love to come back and do it,” he concluded.
