Rory McIlroy on Europe’s Ryder Cup secret weapon

Rory McIlroy believes Team Europe has a trick up its sleeve ahead of this month’s Ryder Cup, in the form of a ‘guru’.

The Northern Irishman believes the intel his side has received from vice-captain Eduardo Molinari could make all the difference in Rome.

McIlroy revealed that Europe’s numbers man is giving the home team a boost in the bid to win back the Ryder Cup.

He said: “He’s delved really deep into the stats in terms of pairings for fourballs, for foursomes, course setup, what our team does well and what their team does well; how can we set ourselves up for success in whatever way possible.

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“He has also formed a very close relationship with some of the players over the last few years because he does some of the stats for certain players.

“So, I think the players trust him. Sometimes you have to take numbers with a grain of salt, and they don’t tell a whole story or the whole picture.

“(But) I think Edoardo comes in there not just as a statistician but as someone that’s played the Ryder Cup and still plays the game at a competitive level.

“I think all of those things combined, there’s a big level of trust that he obviously knows what he is talking about, and what he’s giving us is good information.”

Molinari, alongside his brother Francesco, made his Ryder Cup debut in the win at Celtic Manor in 2010.

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The Italian pair halved their fourball match against Stewart Cink and Matt Kuchar before Eduardo halved his singles match against Rickie Fowler.

And McIlroy insists his personality will shine through in the team room, too.

The 34-year-old added: “Maybe a little more animated than his brother, but yeah, he’s a great person.

“I think he’s the sort of person that would fit easily into any sort of group whether it be young or old.

“And again, he’s got a close relationship with a lot of the players on the team, anyway, which is a big plus.”

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McIlroy will make his seventh appearance in the biennial event at Marco Simone, as one of Team Europe’s most experienced players.

Since his debut in 2010, the former world number one has been part of every contest, although he will have several new names alongside him this year.

Ludvig Aberg, Sepp Straka, Nicolai Hojgaard and Robert MacIntyre will all make their debut in Italy.

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.