IT’S PAUL MCGINLEY, AFTER ALL. After all the drama and speculation surrounding who would be the next Ryder Cup captain for Europe—would it be McGinley, Darren Clarke, or perhaps an encore captaincy for Colin Montgomerie?—the Irishman emerged as the unanimous choice of the European Tour’s tournament committee.
“To lead the cream of the crop in the Ryder Cup is going to be a huge honor,” McGinley said in an Associated Press story.
“To be quite honest, it is a very humbling experience to be sitting in this seat. It is a week I’m looking forward to. It’s a whole new experience for me, the chance to be a captain.”
Clarke recently withdrew his name from consideration, and Montgomerie began an eleventh-hour lobbying effort. World No. 1 Rory McIlroy, a McGinley supporter, thought his countryman was the obvious choice.
“Common sense prevailed in the end,” McIlroy tweeted.
The 2014 Ryder Cup will be played at Gleneagles, Scotland. A part of five winning teams as a player and vice captain, McGinley, 46, has a solid Ryder Cup resume. He sank the Cup-clinching putt at The Belfry (England) in 2002.
“Paul . . . is an outstanding representative of European golf,” said Tom Watson, U.S. Ryder Cup captain. “I look forward to sharing the stage with him as we make our journey to Scotland.”