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Rory McIlroy’s words may unsettle Team Europe and worry Luke Donald at the Ryder Cup

Originally posted on HITC | By Antony Martin | Last updated Sep 9, 2025 9:08 AM ET

Rory McIlroy is expected to take a leading role for Team Europe when they face the United States in this year’s Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black, continuing the approach that worked so well under Luke Donald.

McIlroy has never hidden his love for the competition and he will be eager to help set the tone early on in New York.

He has had a history of getting under the skin of American fans, dating back to his memorable duel with Patrick Reed at Hazeltine in 2016.

In fact, McIlroy has been fuelling the rivalry since 2023, declaring after Europe’s win in Rome that they would also take down the Americans at Bethpage.

More recently, he stirred things up again by questioning whether US captain Keegan Bradley could manage the captain role effectively if he also chooses to play.

However, those comments could be used by the Americans as motivation, which may bother some of McIlroy’s teammates.

Rory McIlroy’s latest comments on the Ryder Cup may not sit well with Luke Donald

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McIlroy has spoken to the Great Britain & Ireland Walker Cup team ahead of their match against the United States at Cypress Point in California.

“As someone who played a Walker Cup and wasn’t able to quite get it done, and then to go on to play Ryder Cups and be able to beat the Yanks in their own backyard, nothing feels better,” he said.

“Please beat them because I know we’re going to beat them at Bethpage.”

While there is no shortage of confidence in those words, there might be some debate about whether they were well-timed or helpful.

Donald is likely hoping his players avoid adding any extra fuel to what is already expected to be a charged atmosphere for the visitors at Bethpage.

The Europeans certainly do not need any additional challenges, and giving the United States more motivation is not part of the plan.

Keegan Bradley’s response to Rory McIlroy’s 2023 Ryder Cup comments

Bradley is known for being direct, and his style fits perfectly with what Team USA needs heading into Bethpage, where the atmosphere is expected to be intense.

Bradley was asked about the comments McIlroy made back in 2023 after Europe’s win in Rome during an interview with Colt Knost.

Knost brought up McIlroy’s remarks: “Winning a Ryder Cup away from home is very difficult, it hasn’t been done since 2012. After the last Ryder Cup in Rome, Rory McIlroy had some very interesting comments about that.“

He then played the quote for Bradley: “I’ve said this for probably six or seven years to anyone who will listen, I think one of the biggest accomplishments in golf is winning an away Ryder Cup and that’s what we’re going to do at Bethpage.”

The US captain responded: “The boys have seen that clip a few times, yeah. Yeah, they may have seen it once or twice.”

If Europe do manage to pull off a win at Bethpage, McIlroy will look like he called it early. But until then, his words have only added more pressure on him and his team – something Donald likely could have done without.

This article first appeared on HITC and was syndicated with permission.

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