Tommy Fleetwood: It would be dream to captain Europe in Bolton Ryder Cup 

Tommy Fleetwood says it would be a dream to lead Europe at a home Ryder Cup in 2035.

Fleetwood, who scored three points and secured the European victory in Rome, has thrown his weight behind Hulton Park’s plans to host the biennial match against Team USA in 12 years’ time.

The venue, near Bolton, is around 30 miles away from where Fleetwood grew up in Southport and the Englishman is backing the proposals that would include a purpose-built stadium course for the match.

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Fleetwood will be 44 when the 2035 Ryder Cup comes around, and is well on his way to establishing his status as a European great with a record of 7-3-2 across three contests as a player.

Luke Donald said in Rome that Fleetwood “absolutely could be a future captain” after leading the Great Britain and Ireland team impressively at the Hero Cup back in January.

And the captaincy has already been considered by Fleetwood, despite his hopes of playing in many more matches before assuming a leadership position later in his career.

“Absolutely a dream of mine would be to captain a Ryder Cup team,” Fleetwood said.

“It’s a long way away to play in a Ryder Cup in the northwest. I mean, [it would be] amazing to captain a Ryder Cup in the northwest, it would be amazing, so just any role that I can play in that.

“Being a part of that bid, supporting the area, being a boy from the north-west of England and everything that we believe that it can bring, it’s very, very special to me.

“On top of that, the opportunity to play a role as a player or a captain or a vice captain or any way of me being in that Ryder Cup would be just the icing on the cake and unbelievably special.

“Looking at the captains that I’ve played under and the figures that they are, the inspiration that they brought to us all as players – if I could live up to half as much as they managed to accomplish in their careers but also as captains, I’ll be very proud of myself to think that I can do that.”

Fleetwood has become an official ambassador for the proposed Hulton Park venue and is also excited about the economic and social regeneration that it would bring to the north-west region, as well as the personal satisfaction that would come with playing in a home Ryder Cup.

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“I’ve had the opportunity to be a bit closer to a project that’s going on at Hulton Park in in the north-west, which is always going to be something that’s very close to my heart,” he added. “The possibility of having a Ryder Cup venue there was clearly something I was very interested in and what that can bring to the area.

“It would be a dream. I’ve played three Ryder Cups now and hopefully I’m going to play a lot more. There’s nothing quite like playing a Ryder Cup at home in Europe. I’ve never had the experience to play one in England, let alone the opportunity to play one from where I’m from in the north-west.

“Being involved in a project like that is very cool for me and the opportunities that it will bring not just for golf but anyone. Jobs, housing around the area, I think it’s much, much needed, and along with that, growing the game and introducing more people to the game that are from my area will be great.”

The Ryder Cup was last played in England at The Belfry in 2002. The Sutton Coldfield venue is also expected to bid for the 2035 match, alongside the London Golf Club and Luton Hoo, with Spain expected to stage the match in 2031.

Ben Parsons joined bunkered as a Content Producer in 2023 and is the man to come to for all of the latest news, across both the professional and amateur games. Formerly of The Mirror and Press Association, he is a member at Halifax Golf Club and is a long-suffering fan of both Manchester United and the Wales rugby team.