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Former Ryder Cup captain Paul McGinley has backed one player to make his debut in this year’s match at Bethpage Black.

McGinley, speaking at the Team Cup – a dress rehearsal for the biennial contest in September – threw his support behind Frenchman Matthieu Pavon on Sunday.

Despite being on the losing Continental Europe side, Pavon, 32, won three points from four matches, only falling short to Tommy Fleetwood in singles.

And McGinley, who will serve as a Strategic Adviser for Team Europe at the Ryder Cup, said the ‘special’ player is the type to rise to the occasion in New York.

“Matthieu Pavon has stood out, and I know he’s on a team that will lose, but he’s been something special,” the Irishman said. “He’s got a bit of grit about him.

“It’s no secret that we are looking at two or three rookies again. We are looking at this Ryder Cup in a very different way to the way we’ve looked at an away one before.

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“What we are particularly looking for is personality, guile and grit, someone who can play in a hostile environment, someone who has an edge about them and, I think, Pavon brings that to the table.

“He had a big year in America last year, which has set him up for a particularly big year this year because he’s in all the Majors and big Signature Events.

“It’ll be interesting to see how he plays in that but, this moment in time, he looks very, very strong.”

After turning pro in 2013, Pavon worked his way up to the DP World Tour before earning his ticket to the States ten years later.

And in his rookie season, he claimed a maiden PGA Tour title at Torrey Pines, at the Farmers Insurance Open.

It made Pavon the first Frenchman to win on the circuit since Arnaud Massy in 1907, when he won the Open Championship – later recognised as a Tour victory.

Now, after climbing to a career high world No.20, Pavon’s next goal is to make a debut under Luke Donald.

He was one of several players looking to stake a claim in front of the English captain in Abu Dhabi this weekend, and McGinley insists they are in contention.

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“Aaron Rai you would put in a similar vein (to Pavon),” he said, “and another name is Matt Wallace, another player with the grit and the guile that we think can perform in that hostile atmosphere.

“Obviously, you have to throw in the players that have played this week. Matthew Jordan has been brilliant. Romain Langasque has played well today, but all of these guys are maybes.

“You never know, they have one good season, and you never know where they may end up.”

Pavon, however, is leading the charge.

“The performance this week is not going to be the determining factor, but it might be if they have brilliant seasons,” McGinley added.

“Those kind of guys will have to have brilliant seasons to bring them up to the level of Pavon and Wallace, those guys who have last season in the bank.”


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John Turnbull A graduate of the University of Stirling, John joined the bunkered team in 2023 as a Content Producer, with a responsibility for covering all breaking news, tour news, grassroots content and much more besides. A keen golfer, he plays the majority of his golf at Falkirk Golf Club. Top of his 'bucket list' is a round of Pebble Beach... ideally in the company of Gareth Bale.

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