Rory McIlroy becomes first player to automatically qualify for 2025 European Ryder Cup team
One of the stalwarts of the European Ryder Cup team is officially locked in for the 2025 competition at Bethpage Black.
Rory McIlroy, the No. 2 golfer in the world and Masters champion, became the first golfer to automatically earn a spot for captain Luke Donald's Team Europe, it was announced Monday. He will make his eighth consecutive Ryder Cup appearance at the biennial competition, scheduled Sept. 26-28 in New York.
McIlroy locked up his spot with two months of the qualification period left thanks to four wins since the European points list began last August.
"It's always a huge honor to represent Europe in the Ryder Cup, so it means a great deal to have qualified for my eighth in a row and to be part of Luke's team again at Bethpage," McIlroy said. 'Rome was such an incredible week with the environment Luke created, and I can't wait to be back in the team room.
'Winning a Ryder Cup away from home is one of the biggest challenges there is in golf. We know it is going to be tough in New York, but we are all looking forward to that challenge in September and the opportunity to potentially do something special.'
McIlroy, 36, has won 18 points in his seven Ryder Cup appearances.
The automatic qualification period for Team Europe ends Sunday, Aug. 24. The top-six players on the European rankings at the conclusion of the Betfred British Masters will secure their spots automatically on Donald's 12-man team for the 2025 Ryder Cup, with Donald's captain's picks coming Monday, Sept. 1.
'Rory has once again been in superb form this year and I'm really pleased to welcome him to Team Europe as our first automatic qualifier for Bethpage," Donald said. "Clearly it is great to have the reigning Masters champion on your team, but Rory also has a wealth of Ryder Cup experience, and that is going to be important for us as we know how tough the challenge is going to be in New York."
As it stands now, the other automatic qualifiers for Team Europe would be Tyrrell Hatton, Shane Lowry, Robert MacIntyre, Sepp Straka and Rasmus Hojgaard.
'I'm now looking forward to seeing how the other players perform over the next two months and seeing who joins Rory in the other automatic qualification spots," Donald said.
Two weeks ago, Scottie Scheffler became the first automatic qualifier for Team USA.
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