European Ryder Cup Team - Overview

Europe's Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal named his two captains picks this morning: Nicolas Colsaerts and Ian Poulter. Unfortunately, Irishman Padraig Harrington misses out on the team for the first time since 1997. His form this year has been patchy and his inability to string good rounds together throughout 2012 was too much for Olazabal to ignore.

Jose Maria Olazabal and Nicolas Colsaerts with the Ryder Cup

Here are the 12 members of the European team who will head to Medinah Country Club, Illinois, to defend their title:

Nicolas Colsaerts: Belgium. 1st appearance. Qualified by captain's pick. 35th in the world. 8th on the Race to Dubai. Won the Volvo World Matchplay in May by defeating Graeme McDowell in the final and finished 7th in this year's British Open.

Sergio Garcia: Spain. 6th appearance (won 14, halved 4, lost 6). Qualified by finishing 7th in World's Points List. 14th in the world. 10th in FedEx Cup. In great form with a win at Wyndham two weeks ago and a 3rd place finish in The Barclays last week.

Paul Lawrie: Scotland. 2nd appearance (won 3, halved one, lost one). Qualified by finishing 3rd on European Points List. 30th in the world. 7th in Race to Dubai. Has won twice this year including last week's Johnnie Walker Championship. Returns to the Ryder Cup after his only appearance in 1999.


Ian Poulter: England. 4th appearance (won 11, halved 0, lost 3). Qualified by captain's pick. 26th in the world. 14th in Race to Dubai. Although he hasn't won this year, Poulter has had 3 top 10s out of the 4 majors.

Paul Lawrie returns after his only previous appearance in 1999

Peter Hanson: Sweden. 2nd appearance (won 1, halved 0, lost 2). Qualified by finishing 6th on European Points list. 34th in the world. 12th in Race to Dubai. Hanson finished tied for 3rd at the Masters this year.

Lee Westwood: England. 8th appearance (won 16, halved 6, lost 11). Qualified by finishing 4th on World Points List. 4th in the world. 10th in Race to Dubai and 27th in FedEx Cup. Won the Nordea Masters this year and recorded top 10s at the Masters and US Open.

Martin Kaymer: Germany. 2nd appearance (won 2, halved 1, lost 1). Qualified by finishing 8th on European Points List. 27th in the world. 30th in Race to Dubai. Has struggled for form this year, with his best finish in the majors a 15th place at the US Open in June.


Graeme McDowell: Northern Ireland. 3rd appearance (win 4, halved 2, lost 2). Qualified by finishing 4th on European Points List. 13th in the world. 6th in Race to Dubai and 33rd in FedEx Cup. McDowell finished inside the top 12 of all four majors in 2012.

Luke Donald: England. 4th appearance (win 8, halved 1, lost 2). Qualified by finishing 2nd on World Points List. 2nd in the world. 9th in Race to Dubai and 14th in FedExCup. Although yet to win a major, Donald has won 2 tournaments this year, one on each side of the Atlantic, including the PGA Tour's Transitions Championship in a four-way playoff.

McIlroy would relish a head-to-head singles battle with Tiger

Rory McIlroy: Northern Ireland. Qualified by finishing 1st on both the European and World Points Lists.1st in the world. 1st in Race to Dubai and 4th in FedEx Cup. Winner of the PGA Championship at Kiawah Island, McIlroy jokingly said he would like to "kick" Tiger's "ass" in the Ryder Cup in a press conference before the Barclays. Tiger was present and laughed along with everyone else. Later they both had lunch together, and Tiger told McIlroy "There is no way you are kicking my ass."



Justin Rose: England. 2nd appearance (won 3, halved 0, lost 1). Qualified by finishing 2nd on European Points List. 8th in the world. 2nd in Race to Dubai and 15th in FedEx Cup. The South African born Englishman had 2 top 10s in majors this year and won the WGC Cadillac Championship in March.

Francesco Molinari: Italy. 2nd appearance (won 0, halved 1, lost 2). Qualified by finishing 5th on the European Points List. 25th in the world.4th in Race to Dubai. The consistent Italian won in Spain earlier this year, has 2 runner-up finishes, and has recorded 8 top 10s and no missed cuts in 19 events on the 2012 European Tour.

8 players return from the triumphant team at Celtic Manor, Wales, in  2010. Colsaerts is the only rookie and England has the most representatives with four players. A run down of the USA team will follow when captain Davis Love III names his 4 captain's picks and 8 automatic qualifiers.