Rory McIlroy feels it is a shame that Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia will not someday captain Europe’s Ryder Cup team after they quit the DP World Tour.
The trio stepped aside after being sanctioned for joining rival LIV Golf, thus rendering them ineligible for inclusion when the match against the United States begins in Rome in September.
On Thursday, Westwood spoke out against the European Tour following the controversy, seemingly closing the door on any hope of a return in the future.
The DP World Tour today confirmed it has received membership resignations from Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, Richard Bland and Lee Westwood who were sanctioned for serious breaches of the Tour’s Conflicting Tournament Regulation committed last June. — DP World Tour (@DPWorldTour) May 3, 2023 And McIlroy said: “I think it’s a shame that you’ve got the highest points score ever in the Ryder Cup and two guys that when they look back on their career, that’s probably going to be at least a big chunk of their legacy is the roles that they have played in the Ryder Cup for Europe. “For those three guys to not captain Europe one day, it’s a shame.