The Ryder Cup countdown is into its final week.
At the BMW PGA Championship, 11 members of Team Europe assembled for their final competitive outing before the biennial match-play spectacular at Bethpage.
Alex Noren, a Vice Captain to skipper Luke Donald later this month, sealed victory in the Rolex Series event for a second time in a play-off against Adrien Saddier.
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• Alex Noren claims second BMW PGA Championship title with play-off triumph
• McIlroy happy to head to Ryder Cup on a high after big finish at Wentworth
Here, we run through how they performed at Wentworth Club ahead of flying to the United States for a two-day practice trip with Donald and the rest of the backroom team.
Viktor Hovland
T5 | 67-66-71-69 -(15)
Missed this event last year through injury, but appears to like it over the West Course with this being the third time he has finished fifth. Was one adrift at the halfway stage, but after an electric start to the third round when he birdied three of three opening four holes the wind was taken out of his sails with back-to-back bogeys on the eighth and ninth as he settled for a 71. After mixed fortunes on the front nine on Sunday, he found a greater rythm again in his game on the back nine to close with a 69.
Tyrrell Hatton
T5 | 69-70-64-70 (-15)
As a past winner, Hatton appeared to be the most likely player from the chasing pack heading into the final round. A flawless third-round 64 saw him play his way into the final group, trailing the overnight co-leaders Noren and Saddier by two shots. And while he appeared to be increasing the pressure on the leading duo with two birdies in his opening five holes, he was unable to build on that as his challenge petered out. But in what was just his seventh counting event this season on the Race to Dubai, he underlined why he could prove an influential figure for Europe.
Matt Fitzpatrick
T5 | 66-71-69-67 (-15)
The Englishman's form since early summer has been fantastic, and that continued this week with another top ten - his seventh worldwide since June. A Wentworth regular, he ended the week in the top ten for SG: Approach. While he may be disappointed not to have been closer to the lead ahead of the final day, he heads stateside high in confidence.
Jon Rahm
T13 | 71-69-69-66 (-13)
At three over through 11 holes of his first round, things didn’t appear to be going well for the Spaniard. However, a hat-trick of birdies late in his day on Thursday helped him to finish under par after the opening day. Back-to-back 69s on Friday and Saturday left him eight adrift of the 54-hole leaders, but he made a fast start to his final round with a hat-trick of birdies on his way to a closing 66. Across his four appearances in this event, he has always been under par.
Ludvig Åberg
T20 | 64-69-73-70 (-7)
Two years on from his debut at Wentworth, when he held the 54-hole lead, the Swede was right in the mix again at the halfway stage after rounds of 64-69 as he impressed with a new putter on the greens. But the 25-year-old failed to maintain that level as he fell away over the weekend. It’s easy to forget he is still only in his second full year as a professional, but he won’t be dwelling too long.
Rory McIlroy
T20 | 69-72-70-65 (-7)
The Race to Dubai leader will rue his performance on the par fives over the opening three days, playing them in two over. His double-bogey seven at the 18th on Friday left him with a lot to do over the weekend, and two further doubles - on the ninth and 17th on Saturday – meant he was among the early starters on Sunday. But he showed his class in the final round to card a 65 that featured a closing eagle to finish in the top 20. His game appears in good shape ahead of spearheading the European charge at Bethpage.
Tommy Fleetwood
T46 | 73-69-71-67 (-8)
The Englishman was making his first start since winning his first PGA TOUR title at East Lake to become the FedExCup champion last month. Struggled to build any momentum on day one, before battling well down the stretch on Friday in front of bumper crowds to make the cut on the number with a birdie at the 18th. After a middling third-round 71, he carded his low round of the week with a flawless 67 on Sunday. As one of three members of Donald’s side in the world’s top ten, he will likely be a key figure for Europe in golf’s greatest team event.
Shane Lowry
T46 | 67-74-68-71 (-8)
A past champion at Wentworth, the Irishman was among the pre-tournament favourites. A 67 saw him get off to the ideal start but a first-round 74 set back his chances, before firing a bogey-free 68 on Saturday to head into the final round with confidence. Despite a double-bogey at the 17th, he still carded a third sub-70 round of the week and will be one of the linchpins in Donald's side.
Justin Rose
T61 | 67-66-76-73 (-6)
One shot off the halfway lead, the Englishman appeared to be in the thick of a title challenge at a venue which has become home but struggled uncharacteristically over the weekend with a series of left misses. However, he looked imperious over the opening two days so will likely dust himself off and it was only last month that he won on the PGA TOUR. At 45, he is indisputably still one of the world’s best and his experience will be a big help on and off the course at the Ryder Cup.
Robert MacIntyre
T74 | 71-71-72 -2 (T74)
Played the front nine in the first two rounds over par, but the Scotsman was blemish-free on the back nine on both days as he birdied two of his final three holes on Friday to make the cut on the number. But he is still yet to get to grips with the West Course, missing the third-round cut after a 72 on Saturday that featured bogeys at the 15th and 18th. Still, a different player than the one who made his Ryder Cup debut at Marco Simone in 2023, and he will likely relish the challenge that awaits in golf's greatest team event.
Rasmus Højgaard
T128 | 74-75 +5 (MC)
Despite a remarkable chip-in eagle at the 18th to end his first round on a high, the Dane was unable to take that momentum into the second round as he dropped six shots in his first seven holes. But a three-birdie finish to Friday was an encouraging way to finish the week, albeit it came to late to make the cut. He arrived at Wentworth on the back of a one-week break after a busy – and successful – late summer stretch on the DP World Tour, including a runner-up finish on home soil at the Danish Golf Championship. He will now turn his focus to final preparations ahead of his rookie Ryder Cup appearance.
