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Justin Rose says Paul Casey would be a ‘massive addition’ to the European team for the 2018 Ryder Cup now he has made himself eligible for the match.
Casey rejoined the European Tour on Monday and plans to play in the Abu Dhabi HSBC Golf Championship in January as he attempts to qualify for his first Ryder Cup in ten years.
The 40-year-old Englishman was ranked inside the top 20 last September when the USA defeated Europe 17-11 at Hazeltine and, afterwards, Rory McIlroy said Casey’s omission ‘hurt’ the team’s chances of success.
Thankfully for captain Thomas Bjorn though, the potentially problematic issue has been resolved and Rose – who has played in four of the last five Ryder Cups – is excited by the prospect.
“It is brilliant Paul has rejoined the Tour given the way he has played this past PGA Tour season,” he told the Express. “His consistency is good and just the way he plays golf is good.
“He is a power player and he would be such a massive addition to the team as he can play any format. He is experienced and Paul is the kind of player we need to really strengthen the team.
“I don’t want to get ahead of myself, but if you add in Jon Rahm as well they would be two massive additions to our team that maybe we didn’t have at Hazeltine. They are two guys who would be very comfortable against the Americans.”
Last year’s European team featured a record six rookies in Danny Willett, Andy Sullivan, Matt Fitzpatrick, Chris Wood, Thomas Pieters and Rafa Cabrera-Bello and Rose revealed one player he’d love to see make his debut at Le Golf National.
“I’m really liking the way the team is shaping up,” he added. “I’d love to see Alex Levy make the team, just being French, a French player. Love the flair in which he plays. He seems to play good, aggressive golf; that would be a cool addition.
“But you don’t want to put too much pressure on these guys because I know it’s already in their minds. There’s no point talking it up too much. There’s a lot of golf to be played between now and September. But so far, so good, I think with the team.”
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