Attention, supporters of Tottenham Hotspur. One of the most impressive leaders in sport is on your side, an inspirational man-manager and shrewd tactician with a proven track record of building a team to become more than the sum of its constituent parts. Loved by his players, feared by his opponents.
The drawback is that Luke Donald will not be throwing his hat into the ring to replace Igor Tudor as Spurs manager, as he will be otherwise engaged for the next 16 months. “I don’t think my expertise in football quite goes that far,” Donald said. “I never really played football growing up, for a start. But I am a Tottenham fan and they’re really struggling at the moment. They’re going to have to dig deep over the next couple of months to avoid relegation.”
Given his role as Europe’s Ryder Cup captain, to which he was reappointed this week after two previous successes, he must view the perilous nature of football management with a particular interest. “It’s a tough job,” he said. “If you’re not winning, you’re the first person to take the blame, and maybe rightly so. My job as Ryder Cup captain is to create the best culture around the team, and I think that, if you get it right, can supersede even talent and great players. If you have a team that’s really behind each other and playing for each other, it can create some special things. That’s certainly been a big part of my job as Ryder Cup captain.”
Europe’s success at Bethpage Black was their first in the United States since 2012
VAUGHN RIDLEY/SPORTSFILE
After Europe had retained the Ryder Cup in thrilling fashion in New York last September, a first victory on American soil since 2012, it was a straightforward decision for the European Tour to invite the Englishman to take charge for a third time at Adare Manor in Ireland next year. His vast experience of the event and his strategic nous and composure under pressure, especially in front of hostile crowds on the Bethpage Black course, have drawn widespread admiration, including another accolade this week, a nomination for team of the year at the Laureus Sports Awards.
The decision to extend his tenure was less straightforward for Donald, 48, simply because the job has become such an all-encompassing role, one that most incumbents fill for only one Ryder Cup cycle. Offered the chance to become the first three-time captain since Bernard Gallacher in the 1990s, Donald took his time to decide, but eventually opted to go for a third consecutive victory for three reasons.
One of these was the firm backing of Europe’s leading players. In the days after Bethpage, Donald was celebrating over a few glasses of wine with Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry, near neighbours at the Bear’s Club golfing development in Jupiter, Florida. Both Irishmen were urging him to lead Europe again at Adare Manor. McIlroy was outstanding once more in New York, crowning a stellar year in which he also completed the career grand slam at the Masters, earning another Laureus award nomination.
To have such a combination, of Donald the captain and McIlroy de facto team leader, as firm friends and staunch allies, is a weighty factor in Europe’s favour, underscoring the unity of the team. “Rory is very passionate about the Ryder Cup and he’s become a great leader for us inside the team rooms, he gets very fired up for what it represents,” Donald said. “I see Rory quite a lot, we live in the same community. We see each other socially more than we play [together]. I’m not grinding quite as hard as him these days, but I see him out on the range. Him, Shane, Matt Fitzpatrick, we all live pretty close, it’s nice to see those guys around.”
Donald has a staunch bond with his players, including Lowry
MIKE STOBE/GETTY IMAGES
Another factor in Donald’s decision was the personal satisfaction he has derived from the Ryder Cup captaincy. His fourth and final appearance as a player came in the Miracle of Medinah in 2012, when he was at the peak of his powers, having spent considerable time as world No1 beforehand. He was 34 at the time and expecting to play in more Ryder Cups, but his form fell away dramatically the following year and he would never regain such heights.
From this experience, he knows the fickleness of professional sport only too well, and that experiences as absorbing as the captaincy should be seized while you have the chance. He has the chance to make history as the first captain to lift the Ryder Cup three times in a row, after his successes in Rome and New York. “Opportunities like this don’t come along very often,” he said. “The ages of mid-40s to 50 can be a bit of a no man’s land for a professional golfer. Not many can still play at the highest levels. Justin Rose is, Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson won majors, but it’s hard to compete against these younger guys. So to have this [captaincy] as something to give me focus and purpose in those years is extremely gratifying.”
But the third and most important factor in Donald’s decision was the backing of his family, his wife, Diane, and their three teenage daughters. He had spoken before of his reluctance to spend too much time away from home before his oldest daughter, Elle, goes to college in two years, and has weighed this up against the experiences the family have enjoyed in Rome and New York, and his duties as a role model to his children.
“It’s been nice to spend more time at home the last few months, getting up and being in a daily routine, taking my daughters to school,” he said. “I read a good book last year, Five Types of Wealth, by Sahil Bloom, and it talks of how 90 per cent of the time you’ll have with your kids is before they get to 18 and go to college. Those sort of things hit hard at times, thinking I’m going to be travelling those two years, her last two years at home. That’s a sacrifice and we talked about that as a family. But the Ryder Cup has been great for my wife and kids, being around extended family and enjoying one of the best sporting events in the world. Also, seeing their Dad work hard and for the preparation to pay off, I think those are good lessons for my kids. If you want to accomplish something, you have to work hard at it. The Ryder Cup as a family has given us quite a lot.”
Donald weighed up the impact a third Ryder Cup as captain would have on his family
PAUL CHILDS/REUTERS
Decision made, he is now starting to map out his path to Adare Manor over the next 16 months. “The cogs are starting to turn,” he said. “I’m thinking about vice-captains, the qualification system, the golf course and the team hotel. There are certain things we’ll rinse and repeat, there’s also new strategies we’ll have to come up with.”
One of his vice-captains is certain to be Edoardo Molinari, who played a key role in the two most recent victories as an adviser in analytics and statistics, areas that Donald thinks will become even more important in 2027. “I’ve learned a lot from Edoardo,” he said. “I think having great people like him around you is a skill in itself. Statistics will play an even bigger role in the next 16 months with the evolution of AI. There’s already been a few ideas floated about how we can move with the times and keep progressing. My job is to find those edges that can give us an advantage. Certainly, through statistics, through Edoardo and AI, we’d be silly not to tap into some of that.”
Which particular areas does he think AI could affect? “I don’t want to give too much away,” he says. “I’m just looking into it myself. But statistical pairings, how to get the most out of players in terms of how they practise, analysing players’ form in a different way, thinking of questions we might not come up with as humans. You can go down a rabbit hole, but it’s about finding the right things that work for you.”
His in-tray also includes the dispute between the Europe-based Tour and Jon Rahm, a star Ryder Cup player, who turned down an offer — which was taken up by eight players, including Tyrrell Hatton — for players from the LIV Tour to sign a settlement, involving the payment of fines, that would enable them to play on both tours. Rahm described the Tour’s position as “extorting players”, but Donald is optimistic that a solution will be found to ensure Rahm is eligible for the Ryder Cup.
“Sometimes, rather than what you hear, or see on social media, it can be much more effective if you just have face-to-face conversations,” he said. “I think we have a good relationship and I somewhat understand where he’s coming from, he has to do what he thinks is best. It’s my job to try to make him available. We’ll talk and we’ll be authentic and honest with each other, that’s how I’ve always tried to approach these challenges.”
As he has done before Rome and New York, Donald will also continue to mine expertise from other sports. “I understand as a captain that you don’t know everything,” he said. “I like to read books, I like to immerse myself in ways to keep improving.
“I’m friendly with Michael Jordan, I picked his brain about how the big picture of what you’re trying to accomplish can be overwhelming, but going back to every day, how do you break that down and make it manageable? That was helpful advice. We brought Novak Djokovic into the team in Rome. He talked about dealing with crowds, forgetting mistakes quickly. Every Ryder Cup is different, but we’ll keep looking to find those competitive edges. I’m really looking forward to the challenge.”
Laureus World Sports Awards nominees Sportsman of the year: Carlos Alcaraz, Ousmane Dembélé, Mondo Duplantis, Marc Márquez, Tadej Pogačar, Jannik Sinner Sportswoman of the year: Aitana Bonmatí, Melissa Jefferson-Wooden, Faith Kipyegon, Katie Ledecky, Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, Aryna Sabalenka Team of the year: England Women’s Football Team, European Ryder Cup Team Golf, India Women’s Cricket Team, McLaren Mastercard Formula 1 Team, Oklahoma City Thunder, Paris Saint-GermainBreakthrough of the year: Désiré Doué, João Fonseca, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Luke Littler, Lando Norris, Yu ZidiComeback of the year: Amanda Anisimova, Egan Bernal, Rory McIlroy, Yulimar Rojas, Leah Williamson, Simon YatesAction sportsperson of the year: Yago Dora, Kilian Jornet, Chloe Kim, Rayssa Leal, Molly Picklum, Tom PidcockSportsperson of the year with a disability: Gabriel Araújo, Catherine Debrunner, Kelsey DiClaudio, David Kratochvíl, Kiara RodríguezSport for good shortlist: A.S.D Gruppo Sportivo Valanga, Fútbol Mas, Kings County Tennis League, MindLeaps, Rugby For Good, Transformación Social TRASO