A glimpse into the future, perhaps? Tom McKibbin – who is set to shift his professional career path to LIV Golf as part of Jon Rahm’s Legion XIII team – has been paired with Tyrrell Hatton for the opening day’s fourballs session in the Team Cup, which takes place in Abu Dhabi over the next three days.
McKibbin, the 22-year-old Belfast golfer who had earned his PGA Tour card for the upcoming season only to be lured away by the mega-bucks on offer on the LIV circuit, is making his debut in the Team Cup, formerly known as the Hero Cup and previously as the Seve Trophy, where Hatton – already a member of Legion XIII – will be his fourballs partner against the Continent of Europe’s French pairing of Antoine Rozner and Julien Gurrier.
In the 2023 iteration of the tournament there were two Irish representatives (Shane Lowry and Séamus Power) but, this time, McKibbin is the only non-English player on Justin Rose’s team. There are no Scots or Welsh at all.
McKibbin is starting his year’s work in Abu Dhabi and will play in next week’s Hero Dubai Desert Classic, with his imminent move to LIV yet to be finalised but expected in advance of next month’s opening event on that Saudi PIF-backed tour in Riyadh.
For now, McKibbin has refused to talk of any such move and has focused on playing the Team Cup which is seen as a chance for Europe’s Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald – who is in Abu Dhabi – to cast his eye over potential players for the defence of the trophy won in Rome in 2023 against the Americans in Bethpage, New York, later this year.
McKibbin is reacquainting himself with matchplay, which he played for Ireland in his amateur days. Ironically, his decision to move into the professional ranks as a teenager came when, in a big shock, he failed to be selected for the GB&I team in the Walker Cup against the USA in 2021.
In moving into the professional ranks, McKibbin emerged as one of Europe’s up-and-coming players (with a breakthrough win on tour in Porsche European Open in 2023): “It’s been a long time since I played match play. Not sure what might come out of me but I doubt anything too crazy,” said McKibbin of returning to team matchplay.
Hatton, a winner on the DP World Tour and on the PGA Tour, is a three-time Ryder Cup player and made the move to LIV last year but remains eligible to play on Donald’s team in New York.
Rose, the GB&I playing captain, is seen the most likely man to succeed Donald for the Ryder Cup at Adare Manor in 2027 and has looked forward to the Team Cup and the chance to claim the trophy back from Francesco Molinari.
“I think it’s been something that’s sort of been on my mind. Because obviously sometimes you play as a player, you’re obviously preparing all the time for tournaments that come up.
“But when you have something like this looming large, you start thinking about it months in advance. What do I want to say? Are there any good ideas I have? What have I learned from previous captains? I feel like it’s been a very big responsibility in my head for a number of months now and I think it’s going well.
“I think obviously once you get here on site, you see the players and you start to get more comfortable with the whole thing. But very different. Out of my comfort zone for sure but that’s always good to challenge yourself,” said Rose, who will play partner Matt Wallace in the opening fourballs against Frenchmen Romain Langascue and Matthieu Pavon.
The Lowdown
The Team Cup
Where: Khalifa City, Abu Dhabi, UAE
The course: Abu Dhabi Golf Resort – Par 72 7,648 yards – has been a regular stop on the DP World Tour having hosted the Abu Dhabi Championship and the Hero Cup (the pre-runner of the Team Cup). The course was constructed on flat, sandy terrain and required a feat of engineering as well as a significant amount of earth-moving to develop the mounding around the layout. The two signature holes are the ninth and the 18th, which bring two of the course’s seven lakes into play.
What is the Team Cup? Think of the old Seve Trophy (which was played biennially from 2000-2013, including twice in Ireland at Druids Glen and The Heritage) before falling out the calendar before being revived as the Hero Cup (in 2023, won by the Continent of Europe). In its latest rebranding, the Team Cup (played in a Ryder Cup year) again features one team made up of players from Great Britain and Ireland and another from continental Europe. The first day’s play features five fourball matches (one session), while the second day features 10 foursomes (two sessions of five matches) and Sunday’s final day has 10 singles. Every player plays every session over the three days.
The field: With Luke Donald keeping a close eye on matters with a view to prospective pairings at the Ryder Cup in Bethpage Black in New York later this year, the two teams have a mix of experience and youth but all aiming to make an impression on Donald. Northern Irishman Tom McKibbin is the only non-English player in Justin Roses’s GB&I team. Julien Guerrier has been drafted into the CE team as a replacement for Nicolai Hojgaard, due to illness.
First day’s fourballs: 7.05am (Irish time): Justin Rose & Matt Wallace v Romain Langascue & Matthieu Pavon; 7.20am: Jordan Smith & Laurie Canter v Rasmus Hojgaard & Rasmus Neergard Petersen; 7.35am: Tyrrell Hatton & Tom McKibbin v Antoine Rozner & Julien Gurrier; 7.50am: Matthew Jordan & Paul Waring v Thorbjorn Olesen & Niklas Norgaard; 8.05am: Tommy Fleetwood & Aaron Rai v Francesco Molinari & Matteo Manassero.
Quote-Unquote: “He’s here helping both teams, and trying to be as neutral as possible I think” – Continental Europe captain Francesco Molinari on how his brother Edoardo, a key member of Luke Donald’s Ryder Cup back room team, is aiding both teams with their data and stats.
Betting: Team GB & I are 4/6 favourites with holders Continental Europe rated 6/4. A draw is 9/1.
On TV: Live on Sky Sports (live coverage 7.30am).
- Sign up for push alerts and have the best news, analysis and comment delivered directly to your phone
- Join The Irish Times on WhatsApp and stay up to date
- Listen to the Counter Ruck podcast for the best rugby chat and analysis
