Following Europe's 2023 Ryder Cup victory, Rory McIlroy said the “big names” without LIV Golf players in the team helped them achieve victory.
A year and a half later, the Northern Irishman has changed his tune.
Tyrrell Hatton, moody and confident, joined LIV in early 2024. However, the Briton remains eligible to compete on the DP World Tour while he appeals his European Tour suspension. Win the Dubai Desert Classic on Sunday.
That impressed McIlroy, who is expected to play in his eighth consecutive Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black in September.
“(Hatton) would be great in New York,” McIlroy told bunker. “He's proven that in the last three Ryder Cups. He's a huge asset to Team Europe.”
There is a slight wrinkle. This will be Hatton's first Ryder Cup appearance as a member of LIV Golf. The LIV Championship does not provide world ranking points, so he will need to perform well in the DP World Tour and majors to automatically advance, otherwise Luke Donald can select the 33-year-old from one of his three captain's picks. year old players.
“This week has been huge for me,” Hatton said after Sunday's win. “I still have four majors left to continue earning points towards the Ryder Cup. It's no secret that I really want to be on that team. I've automatically qualified for the first three Ryder Cups, I hope to continue this momentum.”
If a third-party arbitration body hears LIV players' appeals against DP World Tour fines and bans before the Ryder Cup, there is a risk that LIV players will be ineligible to participate in the biennial tournament.
The big names McIlroy mentioned for 2023 are European Ryder Cup stalwarts Sergio Garcia, Lee Westwood and Ian Poulter. However, Hatton, who destroyed the tee marks in Dubai, has won the Ryder Cup twice and fits the dressing room chemistry.
“(Hatton) does things his own way,” McIlroy said. “He hits it very straight. He doesn't try to really shape it a certain way. It's very straight and it looks like he has his own system and practice style.
“He does that very well. He also doesn't care what other people think, which is a very good attribute in the game.”
However, Hatton is not the only prominent LIV player hoping to be named in the European 2025 team.
It's almost unthinkable that Jon Rahm, who joined LIV in December 2023 and is appealing his DPWT suspension, won't be part of New York's squad. However, the Spaniard fully expects to be there.
“I don't know what will happen in the future, but I can tell you my plan is to join the team at Bethpage,” Lahm said in Dubai last week.
