Ryder Cup hero wants major rule change for LIV Golf stars as Rory McIlroy backed up
Rory McIlroy's view has been backed up by a three-time European Ryder Cup captain.
Ryder Cup legend Bernard Gallacher has thrown his weight behind Rory McIlroy's call for a rule change to allow LIV Golf players to represent Europe in the prestigious tournament.
The three-time European Ryder Cup captain insists that stars like Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, who are currently ineligible to compete in the event due to their association with the LIV Golf series, should be free to to play at Bethpage in 2025.
Currently, European players must be active members of the DP World Tour to qualify for Ryder Cup selection. However, Rahm and Hatton, part of the Legion XIII team, are now being banned and fined for competing on the LIV circuit, which has put their hopes of competing in the biennal showdown in real jeopardy.
Gallacher, a veteran of nine Ryder Cups and a winning captain at Oak Hill in 1995, expressed to Bunkered that Team Europe's captain Luke Donald needs access to top talents like Rahm and Hatton to defend the title won in Rome last October.
"You've got to put your strongest team out there," insisted Gallacher. "The main question last time was Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood but they were in their late forties. It's not like Jon Rahm who's 29 and is a US Open and Masters champion. Rory said he wouldn't want to face the Americans without Jon Rahm and that says it all.
"Tyrrell Hatton is a major winner ready to happen. Take Scottie Scheffler out of it, he's as good as the players around. I've always felt he's a guy who could win a major so you take him as well. You can't not play the strongest team. The Ryder Cup would be very diminished without Jon Rahm and Tyrrell Hatton, for sure."
Gallacher's sentiments resonate with McIlroy's thoughts following Rahm's departure from the PGA Tour. Speaking to Sky Sports, the four-time major winner expressed his belief that Rahm's significance to Europe's prospects would ensure his place in Luke Donald's squad, despite switching tours.
McIlroy stated: "Jon is going to be in Bethpage in 2025 so, because of this decision, the tour are going to have to rewrite the rules for Ryder Cup eligibility, absolutely," he said to Sky Sports.
"There's no question about that. I certainly want Jon Rahm on the next Ryder Cup team. I'm going to miss competing against him week in and week out. He's got so much talent, he's so tenacious, he's a great teammate in the Ryder Cup."
Paul McGinley, who has captained Europe and sits on the Ryder Cup advisory board, mentioned last month that it's not guaranteed that the regulations will be amended to allow LIV Golf players to participate in the 2025 event.
"Under the current systems, [LIV players] are not going to be eligible," McGinley informed the Belfast Telegraph. "So the rules will have to be changed if they are to be played. But there are a lot of hurdles to jump to get to the place where they're going to be eligible."
"You've got to balance making sure the Ryder Cup stays in this top echelon, with the best players playing, but also being fair to the players on both sides. So it's a negotiating position."
