Rory McIlroy named a player he thinks is certain to be picked for Europe’s Ryder Cup team, who barely ranks inside the top 10 of Europe’s rankings.
He’s currently playing in the Tour Championship, but Rory McIlroy is focused on the Ryder Cup in September. Europe has a real chance to repeat its 1995 successes in New York by beating America on its home soil.
All of the USA’s automatic qualifiers are confirmed, and only one spot remains for automatic qualification to Team Europe. But one player need not worry about that, as Rory McIlroy thinks they are certain to be picked.
Rory McIlroy lets slip that Viktor Hovland will be selected for the Ryder Cup
During the tour championship, Masters winner Rory McIlroy was asked if he has had communication with Europe captain Luke Donald. He said there was no need for Donald to be in America currently, as the automatic qualifiers make up the majority of Europeans playing at the Tour Championship.
He listed the players who have qualified, but revealed that one player who is 10th in Europe’s rankings will also make the team.
He said, “Luke is over in Europe right now… There’s a lot of us here that he doesn’t really need to speak to right now. Myself, Rosey, Bob, Tommy, Viktor. The guys that are pretty much on the team.”
McIlroy, Tommy Fleetwood, Robert MacIntyre and Justin Rose are all qualified for the team. McIntyre fought for the BMW Championship and Rose won the St. Jude Championship to secure their places on the team in recent weeks.
| Europe Ryder Cup Ranking (before Tour Champ) | Player | Points |
| 1 (Q) | Rory McIlroy | 3489.21 |
| 2 (Q) | Robert MacIntyre | 1709.94 |
| 3 (Q) | Tommy Fleetwood | 1622.11 |
| 4 (Q) | Justin Rose | 1545.72 |
| 5 (Q) | Tyrrell Hatton | 1279.33 |
| 6 | Shane Lowry | 1275.51 |
| 7 | Sepp Straka | 1264.27 |
| 8 | Rasmus Hojgaard | 1261.91 |
| 9 | Ludvig Aberg | 1140.44 |
| 10 | Viktor Hovland | 1031.34 |
| 11 | Matt Wallace | 869.57 |
| 12 | Matt Fitzpatrick | 850.78 |
Viktor Hovland, however, is 400 points off qualification and will have to rely on a captain’s pick to make the team. Many expect Europe’s team to be largely similar to Rome in 2023, but Donald is unlikely to thank McIlroy for effectively revealing a team member before they are officially announced!
Viktor Hovland brings record-breaking Ryder Cup experience to Europe
Hovland has enjoyed a successful 2025 season. He started it by snapping a year-and-a-half winless streak at the Valspar Championship, edging out American Justin Thomas by one shot.
He fought for his first major win at the U.S. Open, finishing third, and had a seventh-place finish at the BMW Championship to move him up the rankings.
It’s not all been plain sailing for the Norwegian. Despite a positive showing at Oakmont for the U.S. Open, he failed to crack the top-20 at any of the other majors. Most recently, he finished tied for 63rd at The Open Championship at four-over.
He brings Ryder Cup experience to the team, and broke a competition record in Rome. He teamed up with Ludvig Aberg in foursomes against Scottie Scheffler and Brooks Koepka, and dominated.
Hovland and Aberg recorded a 9-and-7 victory over Koepka and Scheffler, marking the largest margin of victory for an 18-hole match, foursomes or otherwise, in the history of the Ryder Cup.
He’s showing good form in the playoffs, and after humiliating the world’s best two years ago, he can take great confidence into New York.