Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods both had very different reasons for being selected as Ryder Cup captains.
Tiger Woods is set to be the Ryder Cup captain in the future, but turned down an offer to do so until 2025, while Rory McIlroy won’t continue in the role because it’s “too much work.”
Rory McIlroy and Tiger Woods both declined the opportunity, but for different reasons, and both declined the Ryder Cup captain position.
McIlroy vs. It would be a dream for any golf fan to see Woods captain Team Europe and Team USA respectively, but it’s highly unlikely as both men have begged to decline the prestigious award. Woods turned down an offer to captain the US team in the upcoming Ryder Cup as he thought it was unrealistic given his commitments with other countries. “Given my new responsibilities on the (PGA) Tour and the time that comes with it, I felt that I would not be able to dedicate the time that the American team and the players need as captain” Woods said in a statement the PGA of America released Tuesday. Although he turned down the role for 2025, he hinted he might consider it in the future. That doesn’t mean I don’t want to be team captain in the future. When the time is right, I’ll come before this committee and make a decision.
McIlroy, meanwhile, was the leading candidate to captain Team Europe in the 2027 or 2029 Ryder Cup but turned down the opportunity because it would require “a lot of work.” Though Woods’ days as a Ryder Cup player are over at this point in his career, McIlroy just doesn’t want to jeopardize his participation in the tournament.
“It’s too much work,” McIlroy said. “I saw what Luke (Donald) went through in the build-up to Rome and you can’t be as good a captain as you need to be and still keep playing. “It’s been mentioned before and I said, ‘Absolutely not.’ If you want to be the best captain you can be, you can’t play. And if you want to be the best player you can be, you can’t be captain. It’s one or the other, especially with how big the Ryder Cup is and how much you have to do leading up to the event, the week of the event.”
