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The United States was facing an uphill battle when it headed to Team Europe’s home turf for the 2023 Ryder Cup in Rome, but it was unable to bounce back from a truly atrocious start en route to coming up short at Marco Simone.
Zach Johnson was far from the only American who caught heat thanks to their lackluster performance at the tournament, but he was obviously at the receiving end of the bulk of the criticism when you consider he was the captain who was tasked with putting together a competitive team that didn’t even come close to living up to expectations.
It’s essentially a foregone conclusion Johnson won’t be asked to reprise that role when the Ryder Cup heads to Bethpage Black in 2025, and while there are plenty of candidates who could step up to fill that void, there’s not a single name who’s been floated more than the man, myth, and legend who is Tiger Woods.
I don’t think I need to do a deep dive into Tiger’s résumé to highlight the many reasons he’s suited for that particular gig, as it’s hard to think of anyone who’s a better fit for the role than a man who harnessed his virtually unparalleled competitive streak to become one of the most dominant golfers to ever roam the links.
According to Golf Channel, Davis Love III (who served as Team USA’s Ryder Cup captain in 2012 and 2016) basically said as much while discussing the possibility of Woods taking the reins during a PGA Champions Tour event on Thursday, although he acknowledged getting him to accept the job could be easier said than done.
Love noted it’s a pretty time-consuming gig that could interfere with the many other ventures Woods has on his plate at the moment, saying:
“Tiger’s into a lot of stuff right now… 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…
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. It takes a lot out of you. Hopefully, we can talk Woods into it.”
At this point, Tiger doesn’t have anything left to prove, although I do think he’s the kind of guy who would be willing to take the job just so he could say he led the United States to a win at the Ryder Cup.