Padraig Budges: Might Have "To Take One For The Team" And Play Fan-Free Ryder Cup
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The first drip came in the form of a column by Paul McGinley, and given that piece, combined with a thought, I gave a Shack Show quick take about how the world mood should dictate a low key Ryder Cup.
Yet key players (McIlroy, Fleetwood) and 2020 European Captain Padraig Harrington who have emphatically declared: no fans, no Ryder Cup. Harrington made his views known in early April but now the captain has budged, Rick Broadbent reports in the Times.
Padraig Harrington has admitted that the Ryder Cup could end up having to “take one for the team” and be played without fans.
The Europe captain is adamant that he and the players want spectators to be present at the biennial event in September, but accepts the decision is “above my pay grade” and different scenarios are being investigated. He also said he thought that if the PGA Tour made a successful comeback in June then it “massively” increased the likelihood of fans being allowed into the Ryder Cup.
But as Brian Keogh at the Irish Golf Desk noted on Twitter, this may be more about the very survival of the European Tour, which banks significant Ryder Cup revenue necessary for operations.
