Europe’s captain Padraig Harrington says that the Bryson DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka rivalry could inspire the US at the Ryder Cup rather than hinder them.
The pair are in the midst of an ongoing feud that apparently started all the way back in 2019.
US team captain Steve Stricker has been trying to end the dispute, but Harrington thinks it could actually help the team.
“If they get their act together and pull together, the team sees that and pulls together really strongly,” Harrington says.
“When you have friction between players, you bring them into a team environment and you overcome it, that’s actually a big bonus to the team.”
“All of a sudden you get an uplift from it. That’s why I’m not relying on it. As a captain, I’d see it as something that could work in my favor. If I can get these guys to show unity, the rest of the team would follow.”
Harrington made a point with his frosty relationship with Sergio Garcia as an example, which dates back to his 2007 Open and 2008 US PGA wins over the Spaniard, who he later described as a “sore loser”.
Harrington says they were always able to put their personal issues to one side for the Ryder Cup, adding that their differences are now behind them.
The 2017 Masters champion has been chosen as one of his three wildcard selections for the Ryder Cup at the end of September.
“You could say me and Sergio had that little bit of friction over the years, which we easily overcame on weeks of the Ryder Cup,” he added. “We would be hugging at a Ryder Cup.”
The 43rd staging of the biennial event takes place at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin from 24-26 September.
Europe has won nine of the past 12 Ryder Cups and are the defending champions after winning Golf National in Paris in 2018.
