LIMERICK — Less than a year remains until the 2027 Ryder Cup at Adare Manor from 17-19 September, where Luke Donald will attempt to become the first captain in history to win three in a row. The contest will mark 100 years since Walter Hagen's USA defeated Ted Ray's Great Britain at Worcester CC in Massachusetts, and only the second time Ireland has hosted the event. After two days of festivities around Adare Manor and Limerick, Donald and American captain Jim Furyk faced the media with a year to go, with Furyk still seeking to atone for his 17.5-10.5 defeat to Thomas Bjorn's Europeans at Le Golf National in 2018.
Furyk was blunt about the need for change, labelling foursomes a "glaring" weakness and promising a full overhaul. The Americans have endured a dismal run in the alternate-shot format, losing 7-1 at the 2023 Ryder Cup, 6-3 at the 2024 Presidents Cup, 6-2 at the 2025 Ryder Cup and 7-2 at the 2026 Presidents Cup. "We're not real happy with the last two results, so, yes, change will be made," Furyk said. "We're going to evolve. We're going to get better, noticeably, I guess, right off the bat, a new points system moving forward, a new analytics team moving forward. But a number of different changes coming and stuff that we're very excited about." He added: "I will promise you, we will be prepared. I'm going to ask this team to do more than any other United States team has in the past. We have too much depth to have that poor record in alternate-shot."
Despite the Americans typically arriving as betting favourites on world rankings, Furyk insisted his side are underdogs. It will be 34 years since the USA last won on European soil by the time play begins next September. "It's us against the world at this point, or us against Europe. There's going to be 50,000 people making a lot of noise," he said. "We also know that it's been 34 years since we won in Europe. There's no secret. I'm going to hear it over and over again, so I'm going to embrace it." He noted that Donald and Edoardo Molinari have the opportunity to set the course up to tip the scales, and said he needs 12 players who "love that atmosphere and love walking into that type of arena".
Crowd behaviour dominated discussion after the 2025 Ryder Cup at Bethpage was marred by abuse directed at Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry and players' wives and partners. At the recent Presidents Cup, constant shouts of 'Get in the water' and 'Get in the bunker' were heard, and Nico Echavarria was heckled during his swing on Sunday, prompting Scottie Scheffler to concede a chip for par in an act described as incredible sportsmanship. Donald said it is his responsibility to ensure respect at Adare. "For me, it's certainly my responsibility as the home captain to play this Ryder Cup in the right spirit, and that's what, certainly, in conjunction with Jim and their team, we'll want to do," Donald said. "We want the best team to win on the golf course." Furyk added: "I think that we have to acknowledge that absolutely at Bethpage, the fan behaviour was over the top," while praising Scheffler's gesture and predicting a "great European crowd" who use football-style chants in unison.
Furyk also reflected on Le Golf National, where thick rough and tight fairways punished wayward driving. He admitted he may not have had the right personnel. "In hindsight, maybe we didn't have the horses for the course," he said, noting he had picked longer, more crooked hitters who were in form over shorter, straighter players who were injured or out of form. Donald, meanwhile, responded to Presidents Cup captain Brandt Snedeker's claim that the Americans will be a "problem" in Ireland after their 9.5-2.5 singles comeback to win that event. "I kind of tend to agree. I have zero complacency about how strong the US are going to be," Donald said. Furyk confirmed preparation will be central, with a strong push for prospective players to visit Adare Manor next summer around the Irish Open at The K Club the week before the Scottish Open. Justin Thomas was the only American to play the French Open in 2018, and Furyk said: "I look forward to bringing some folks here to Adare Manor next summer and getting a chance to see the golf course."