© Andrew Redington / Getty Images Sport
The incident between Rory McIlroy and Joe LaCava remains a topic of discussion even a month later. In a fourball match, LaCava waved his hat in Rory McIlroy’s direction, which visibly frustrated the Northern Irishman. The conflict escalated both during the match and in the car park afterward.
Luke Donald, the European team captain, shared his insights on the incident with The Times. Donald acknowledged McIlroy’s reaction, given that LaCava’s actions were clearly meant to provoke. Surprisingly, this incident served as motivation for McIlroy.
“Rory was upset, quite rightfully, and these things happen at the Ryder Cup. It’s a passionate event. Joe overstepped the mark and tried to reach out after the fact and apologise but we just tried to use that as fuel for Sunday.
I didn’t need to say much”. – Donald said.
Luke Donald on Ryder Cup and paying
Donald did a great thing with the European team and brought them the trophy. Many believe that without Luke, this kind of success would be impossible.
His leadership abilities, as well as coaching qualities, must be praised. Donald surprised many a few days ago when he gave his opinion on whether or not golfers should be paid to play the Ryder Cup. Luke is someone who has tremendous respect for the Ryder Cup.
He believes that playing in such a competition is everyone’s dream and that the primary focus should be victory. “It’s one week where you play for more than yourself, not about money or points, it’s about coming together as a team and the fans feed off that – it’s all passion I don’t think we should ever get paid.
If you play well, you can get paid in other ways. Your brand will go up exponentially and certain people will have bonuses in their contracts, but if you want to keep the essence and history of the Ryder Cup, it needs to stay the same”.
Source: Golfmonthly
