Boot out Pog

JOSE DEMANDS TRANSFER

THERE was a time when Rory Mcilroy did not give the Ryder Cup a second thought – now, it is barely out of his mind.

In fact, he has been psyching himself up for this one from the moment the Americans uncorked the celebration fizz two years ago.

“I’ve been excited for this since the last day in Hazeltine when we were not the ones spraying champagne for a change,” he declared. “I really love being part of the process.”

That has not always been the case.

“Going into my first Ryder Cup, I didn’t know what all the fuss was about,” he admitted.

“I still thought it was a team event that really doesn’t matter in the big scheme of things. I was more concerned about individual titles and all that.”

Heading into his fifth Ryder Cup, not only does he know what all the fuss is about, Mcilroy is the talisman, the superstar who has embraced the team ethic, the locker-room joker. After the first practice round, Mcilroy posted a picture of a sleeping Jon Rahm – in his underwear – suggesting the Spaniard needed a lie-down after Rory outdrove him by 50 yards on every hole.

It was on the team’s private social media group, but, in the build-up to this week, Mcilroy videoed himself and three team-mates making a prank call to captain Thomas Bjorn.

The tables were turned when impressionist Conor Moore made a video which poked fun at all the members of the European team, but at Mcilroy and Justin Rose, in particular.

“The more merciless, the funnier,” laughed Rose. “They were all brilliant.”

And Rahm responded to Mcilroy’s jibe with his own barb at the Northern Irishman. The young Spaniard said: “We are just trying to make fun of each other. Everyone. If you think you’ve gotten away so far, you are not going to.

“At first, I was a little bit hesitant – I didn’t want to p*** off anybody, but, once I realised what the tone was going to be, within 30 seconds, somebody was getting it.”

The banter is just part of the sort of team-bonding that has served Europe so well over the last couple of decades.

Mcilroy said: “I think our strength has been that we all get behind one another and whatever differences we may have, we put them to the side for this week and we are a cohesive unit.

“I think that has served us well, especially in the last few years – Europe has had a pretty good run.”

That good run – eight wins in the last 11 instalments – did meet a bump in the road with the defeat in Hazeltine.

And Mcilroy believes one of the reasons the Americans will be formidable opponents again is that they have developed the sort of camaraderie long enjoyed by the Europeans.

He said: “I think the dynamic of the American team has become a little more cohesive and that’s to do with the younger guys coming on board, embracing the Ryder Cup and making it a very important part of their careers.

“You’ve seen Jordan (Spieth) and Rickie (Fowler) and JT ( Justin Thomas) – those guys hang out together and it seems like the togetherness is just a little bit more there than maybe it used to be.”

But for all the talk of the importance of team spirit, each team will need their main men to put in big performances.

That is why the pressure will be on Mcilroy – pressure he is certain he can cope with.

“Whatever Thomas thinks my role should be, that’s what I am going to play,” he said.

“But I’m sure I’ll be one of the leaders.”

And that is no less than Bjorn, his team-mates and Europe expect.

ROR WITH LAUGHTER Mcilroy shares a joke with his European pals as he prepares to do battle with the Americans