Ryder Cup Captain Luke Donald on ‘picking $3.8B-worth NBA legend’s brains’ for advice

Europe Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald opened up about the advice he received from the NBA star Michael Jordan. This week, the US and European teams are gearing up for the biennial tournament. In a pre-event press conference held on Tuesday, Donald talked about his team's preparation for the event.

Donald also reflected on the advice he sought from Jordan, who has a net worth of $3.8 billion (via Forbes). Donald said, via PGA Tour:

"Michael is someone I’ve been very fortunate to get access to and pick his brain occasionally about what made him tick, what motivated him, how he was able to get the best out of himself. It’s nice to have someone that is a legend of their sport, the greatest ever, quite arguably, to sit down occasionally and pick their brains.”

Michael Jordan is an avid golfer, and he shares a good bond with Donald. However, this week, as the European team will face the US Team, the English professional golfer expects that his good friend Jordan will be rooting for the American team.

The European team consists of six automatic qualifiers, which include Rory McIlroy, Robert MacIntyre, Tommy Fleetwood, Justin Rose, Rasmus Højgaard, and Tyrrell Hatton. Meanwhile, Donald selected Shane Lowry, Sepp Straka, Ludvig Åberg, Viktor Hovland, Matt Fitzpatrick, and Jon Rahm to complete his 12-man roster.

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Luke Donald opens up about the guest for the Ryder Cup

Luke Donald with his team members at the PGA: Ryder Cup - Practice Round - Source: Imagn

In the pre-tournament press conference, European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald announced a guest speaker to motivate his team for the biennial tournament. He talked about Novak Djokovic, who joined the team in the last edition but refrained from sharing the details of who it was this year.

Donald said, via ASAP Sports:

"Two years ago we had Novak Djokovic come to our team. I'm not going to share who we have or who we might not have come to the team. Again, my job is to, one, obviously get the guys ready but create an experience for them that they'll never forget. We want to create a week where they have the most fun, on and off the golf course. So.

"We work very hard, myself, my wife, on creating a week where they're going to remember this no matter what. These are great experiences to be a part of the Ryder Cup," he added.

Under the guidance of Luke Donald, the European team won the Ryder Cup in 2023 at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club. He would be looking forward to this week’s game on Friday. The finale will be played on Sunday.