Three Ryder Cup rookies were among the six captain’s picks announced for the European team on Monday.
Captain Luke Donald selected Shane Lowry of Ireland and Justin Rose and Tommy Fleetwood of England along with first-timers Ludvig Aberg of Sweden, Sepp Straka of Austria and Nicolai Hojgaard of Denmark.
They will join the six automatic qualifiers for the biennial competition against the United States taking place from Sept. 30-Oct. 1 at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club outside Rome, Italy.
Donald’s picks join Northern Ireland’s Rory McIlroy, Spain’s Jon Rahm, Scotland’s Robert MacIntyre, Norway’s Viktor Hovland and England’s Matt Fitzpatrick and Tyrrell Hatton.
The rapidly rising Aberg, 23, turned pro in June. He carded four straight birdies late in Sunday’s final round to win the European Masters in Switzerland.
Straka, 30, is a two-time winner on the PGA Tour with top-10 finishes this season at the PGA Championship (T7) and The Open Championship (T2).
Hojgaard, 22, is a two-time winner on the European Tour and currently No. 78 in the Official World Golf Ranking.
Poland’s Adrian Meronk, winner of this year’s Italian Open at Marco Simone, was the most notable omission from the European roster.
The U.S. team is the defending champion, coming off a record-setting 19-9 victory at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin in 2021.
–Field Level Media