NEW YORK (AFP) – Europe Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald revealed on Tuesday he has been in talks with LIV golf defector Sergio Garcia about making a possible return to the team for next year's clash with the USA.
Speaking at an event in New York to mark the countdown to next year's Europe-USA Ryder Cup showdown at Bethpage, Donald confirmed he had spoken to Garcia about his availibility.
Garcia, the all-time leading Ryder Cup scorer with 28.5 points in 10 appearances, missed last year's tournament in Rome after opting to join the Saudi-backed LIV Golf circuit.
However Donald said on Tuesday that Garcia was now considering applying to rejoin the DP World Tour in a push to be eligible for selection.
"Obviously he resigned his membership a couple years ago," Donald said of Garcia.
"But we have had some chats. He's considering rejoining. He'd have to follow all the rules and regulations like everyone else, and if he does that, again, he will be eligible to partake in the Ryder Cup.
"We chatted on phone a couple weeks ago. He's certainly very interested in doing that. He understands everything that's involved, and again, the decision has to go to him, whether he's prepared to do all that.
"But certainly, we've had that discussion, yes."
Donald said existing regulations meant other LIV players could also be available as captain's picks.
"The DP World Tour's policies have been very consistent. There's been a lot of clarity around that," Donald said.
"It's really the same as it was in Rome. You have to be a Member of The European Tour and born in Europe. If you fulfill the regulations and the rules that the DP World Tour set, then you're eligible. There's a bunch of LIV guys that play on LIV that they are eligible now; so I can pick them at will."
US officials have already given the green light for LIV players to play on the American team, as they did in 2023 when Brooks Koepka was given a captain's pick to join the team.
United States captain Keegan Bradley said Tuesday he planned to select "the 12 best players."
"So if we feel like there's a few guys there, one guy, two guys, whatever it is, then we're going to do that," Bradley said.
"But we're too far out to figure out how this is all going to play out. But we're definitely going to take the 12 best players however that shakes out."
The 2025 Ryder Cup takes place at Bethpage Black in New York from September 26-28. Defending champions Europe are chasing their first victory in the tournament on US soil since the famous "Miracle at Medinah" in 2012.