There are still two months until the next Ryder Cup, but Jon Rahm already has thoughts on which golfer should captain Team Europe six years hence.
With Ryder Cup officials revealing Tuesday that Spain's Camiral Golf Resort will host the 2031 competition, Rahm believes countryman Sergio Garcia makes sense as Team Europe's captain. The only other time Spain was the site for the Ryder Cup, Spain's Seve Ballesteros captained his side to victory in 1997 at Valderrama.
"I think there's something to say about possibly having, obviously, a local captain," Rahm said Wednesday while previewing this week's LIV Golf United Kingdom tournament.
"I think it would do wonders for the crowd. If history shows us anything, and it's very hard to compare anybody to Seve, but I've only heard stories about what that Ryder Cup was like. I would say, if possible, I think that's a very obvious good choice to have Sergio be a part of that one."
The 45-year-old Garcia ranks among the greatest performers in Ryder Cup annals. In 10 Ryder Cup competitions from 1999 to 2021, he delivered a 25-13-7 record in singles matches. No one has equaled his 28.5 points earned - and he might claim a spot on captain Luke Donald's team for this year's Ryder Cup at Bethpage Black in New York.
"I think that I can bring things to the team that-to any team that would probably need it," Garcia told reporters after making the cut at last week's Open Championship. "Obviously, at the end of the day, he's going to make whatever he thinks is the best decision for him and his team, at the end of the day. So, we'll see."