Tranlate this title Rory McIlroy picks his side ahead of Presidents Cup in spanish

Rory McIlroy will not be playing in the Presidents Cup this week, but the Northern Irishman already made it clear which team he wants to see celebrating at Medinah.

The 37-year-old spoke about the event before the BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth, where he was also asked about the recent Solheim Cup. Europe defeated the United States 15-13 in the Netherlands, adding another result to what has been a difficult period for American teams in international golf.

McIlroy admitted that he did not watch much of the Solheim Cup, although he was happy with the final result. The current world No. 2 then mentioned Europe’s Ryder Cup victory at Bethpage and Great Britain and Ireland’s Walker Cup success before turning his attention to the Presidents Cup.

“I honestly didn’t [watch much of the Solheim Cup], but obviously a great result for the European side, after what we did in Bethpage, what the Walker Cup guys did.

“All we need now is the Internationals to do it in a couple of weeks. That would be great.”

The six-time major winner will therefore be supporting Geoff Ogilvy’s International Team against Brandt Snedeker’s United States side.

McIlroy enjoyed a very good Ryder Cup at Bethpage: He was one of the central figures when Europe defeated the United States

It is not surprising that McIlroy still has team golf on his mind. Only a year ago, he was one of the central figures when Europe defeated the United States 15-13 at Bethpage Black in New York.

McIlroy played five matches and collected 3.5 points for Luke Donald’s team. He finished the week with a 3-1-1 record, winning both of his foursomes matches and taking another win and a tie in four-ball.

The experienced golfer has always spoken with a lot of emotion about the Ryder Cup in recent years. Europe had not won on American soil since the famous 2012 comeback at Medinah before ending that wait at Bethpage in 2025.

The result was followed by two more American defeats in team golf this September. Great Britain and Ireland beat the United States 13.5-12.5 in the Walker Cup at Lahinch, while Europe then won the Solheim Cup 15-13 at Bernardus Golf.

McIlroy noticed that run and joked that one more International win would complete the sequence.

He was speaking at Wentworth before another good week personally. McIlroy eventually finished tied for second at the BMW PGA Championship on 15-under, two shots behind J.J. Spaun.

The Northern Irishman remains No. 2 in the world and has already won six major championships during his career. His 2026 season also included another Masters title, while he continues to chase more success in the Race to Dubai.

International Team has history against it at Medinah

McIlroy may want the International Team to win, although the history of the Presidents Cup has been very different from the Ryder Cup.

The United States has won 13 of the previous 15 editions. The International Team’s only victory came at Royal Melbourne in 1998, while the 2003 contest in South Africa finished in a 17-17 tie.

The Americans have won every Presidents Cup since then. They beat the International Team 17.5-12.5 in 2022 before recording an 18.5-11.5 victory at Royal Montreal two years later.

There have still been moments when the International Team looked capable of changing that story. In 2019 at Royal Melbourne, the Internationals led 4-1 after the opening session before the United States eventually recovered and won 16-14.

Snedeker’s team includes world No. 1 Scottie Scheffler, Collin Morikawa, Xander Schauffele, Patrick Cantlay, Justin Thomas and several other familiar names. Ogilvy’s International group includes Hideki Matsuyama, Adam Scott, Min Woo Lee, Sungjae Im, Tom Kim and Si Woo Kim.

The competition begins on Thursday with five four-ball matches. Scheffler and Sam Burns will start the opening session against Min Woo Lee and Sungjae Im, while Matsuyama and Ryo Hisatsune face Cameron Young and Schauffele in the second match.

Medinah also brings an interesting memory for European golf. It was the place where Europe produced its famous Ryder Cup comeback in 2012, overcoming a 10-6 deficit before the Sunday singles.

McIlroy was part of that European team as a 23-year-old and won three points during the week.

This time he will only watch from outside the competition because European players are not part of the Presidents Cup. The event features the United States against players from the rest of the world outside Europe.

The first team to reach 15.5 points will win at Medinah, with 30 matches scheduled across four days. Sunday will bring 12 singles matches and decide whether McIlroy gets the result he said he would like to see.