European players spell out why Ryder Cup is not about money in new documentary

According to a recent report, members of the US team at Bethpage Black next September will receive $400,000 each to play in the 45th edition of the biennial contest.

Both Rory McIlroy and Shane Lowry have said they don’t believe that should be the case, with McIlroy even admitting that he’d pay for the privilege to be involved in the match.

The attitude of European players when it comes to the Ryder Cup has been highlighted in Una Famiglia, a new documentary that is being launched next Tuesday.

It was filmed around last year’s match at Marco Simone Golf Club in Rome, where Luke Donald led Europe to victory and, on the back of that, has been reappointed for the 2025 encounter.

In the documentary, the likes of McIlroy, Lowry, Jon Rahm, Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose all speak openly and passionately about what the Ryder Cup means to them.

“We played for each other,” declared McIlroy of Europe bouncing back from a record defeat at Whistling Straits two years earlier to regain the coveted trophy on the outskirts of the Italian capital.

Rose, who was playing in the contest for a sixth time, added: “We are united by a culture. We are united by a generation of players who came before us.

“A good pairing in the European team doesn’t mean playing with your best mate. It’s about representing something bigger than yourself and, for me, that is what being a European Ryder Cup player is all about.”

Donald, who is hailed in the documentary by one of his predecessors, Paul McGinley, for delivering Europe’s “best performance as a team”, openly admits in it for the first time that he had considered leaving out Bob MacIntyre on the Saturday.

Partnered by Rose in the fourball session on Friday, the Scot struggled a bit and was the first to admit that but played better alongside his experienced partner the following day before winning his singles against US Open champion Wyndham Clark.

“We talked about Rosey playing with Tommy potentially on Saturday,” admitted Donald, “but I did feel Bobby needed to go out there again as they got a valuable half point on Friday and I felt like if I didn’t play him again on Saturday, he might struggle on Sunday.

“I think it was great for Bob, who obviously found something on the green on that Saturday afternoon, made a couple of putts and that just got him going.”

In what is a truly insightful documentary, which includes some fantastic input from Ryder Cup legend Jose Maria Olazabal, McIlroy also speaks about his fallout with Joe LaCava, one of the American caddies, on the Saturday night.

“As soon as I saw anyone with an American jersey, I went after them,” said the Northern Irishman of losing his cool in the car park. “Not my proudest moment, but I felt like what happened on the 18th green and then spilled over to the care park almost made us feel we were ready more than ever to go out on the Sunday to all win our points and get the Ryder Cup back.”

The documentary also shows Donald visiting Bethpage Black, where he will bid to join Tony Jacklin as the only European captain to record home and away wins. “It’s going to be ready as the New York fans are tough” the former world No 1 is told by an American, to which he replies with a smile: “I know, we know!”

Una Famiglia will be released on Tuesday 3 December exclusively on the Ryder Cup YouTube channel