Who is the next U.S. Ryder Cup captain?
Davis Love III’s choice will make a lot of golf fans giddy.
“We’ve got to call Tiger Woods and ask him,” Love said Thursday at the PGA Tour Champions’ Furyk & Friends.
Love, 59, was the U.S. captain in 2012 and 2016 and has also served as a vice-captain four times, including last week during Team USA’s loss in Rome. But with a new wave of potential future captains emerging, Love says Woods is first in line to lead the U.S. squad at Bethpage Black in 2025 – if he’s up for it.
“I think if he wants – obviously Tiger’s into a lot of stuff right now, but it’s kind of his call, I would say,” Love said. “I hate to put pressure on him, but it’s kind of his call. Obviously, with some guys out, he’s the next logical choice.”
Some had pointed to Phil Mickelson getting the nod in two years, but that appears unlikely after his move to the Saudi-backed LIV Golf circuit last year.
Woods, meanwhile, has served as a member of the task force that overhauled the U.S. Ryder Cup process after the 2014 matches and has been involved with Team USA even as injuries have limited his ability to compete in the biennial event. The 15-time major winner was a vice-captain in 2018 and the 2019 Presidents Cup captain.
Love, though, has his doubts that Woods, 47, will accept the captainship, based on some of the concerns Woods raised many years ago.
“I remember a time when Tiger and Phil watched me do it and went, ‘Holy cow, I don’t know if we want to put that much time and effort into it,’” Love said. “It takes a lot out of you. Hopefully, we can talk [Woods] into it.”
Woods has fond memories of Bethpage Black, winning the U.S. Open there in 2002. However, whether Woods is the captain in New York or not, Love believes that Team USA needs some fresh blood with who’s at the helm moving forward.
That will come at Love’s expense, but he’s at peace with that.
“They need to get rid of guys like Davis Love and probably Fred Couples and move on,” he said. “I’m lobbying for it.”
