World cup 2022

On Friday Europe will begin their mission to regain the Ryder Cup from the United States in Rome. They lost the cup by a record 19-9 margin in 2021 but have high hopes of a very different result at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club. Metro looks at five crucial areas which could decide who will be celebrating on Sunday.

Will home advantage prove crucial again?

Seven of the last eight contests have been won by the home side, the exception being the ‘Miracle at Medinah’ in 2012 where Europe recovered from 10-4 down to pull off a remarkable victory.

Nine of the US team made a recent scouting trip to Marco Simone as they bid to secure a first win on European soil since 1993 but many of the European side have contested the Italian Open at the venue over the last three years, with Robert MacIntyre (2022) and Nicolai Hojgaard (2021) winning the title.

The rough is long and greens slower than is usual on the PGA Tour, both seen as moves to give the hosts the advantage.

Can wild cards justify their picks?

Both captains opted to have six wild cards and there was inevitably controversy as Zach Johnson selected an out-of-form Justin Thomas and Luke Donald left out Adrian Meronk, despite his Italian Open win in May.

Thomas, in particular, will be under scrutiny after being selected ahead of the likes of Keegan Bradley, Lucas Glover and Cameron Young, although he boasts a strong record in team competitions and was fifth on his most recent tour start.

Will Ludvig Aberg live up to his billing?

Aberg has made the fastest transition ever from amateur golf to the Ryder Cup after only turning professional in June, the 23-year-old winning the final qualifying event in Switzerland and being selected by Donald hours later.

He also led the BMW PGA Championship after 54 holes but struggled to a closing 76, a result which could be a blessing in disguise if it cools the hype surrounding the supremely talented Swede.

Donald turns back on LIV stars

The USA have a member of the Saudi-funded breakaway in Brooks Koepka, the five-time major winner getting a wild card after only dropping out of an automatic qualifying spot after the final event.

Dustin Johnson – who won all five of his matches in 2021 – and Bryson DeChambeau could arguably have strengthened the US side, but it is Europe who will be without the vast experience of Ryder Cup legends Ian Poulter, Sergio Garcia and Lee Westwood.

Then again, they have shown little to suggest they would have come close to qualifying for the European team and it feels like a changing of the guard for Europe was due regardless of golf’s civil war.

Will Europe’s big guns fire?

Europe can boast three of the world’s top four – although the US do have the No.1 in Scottie Scheffler – and 2022 US Open champion Matt Fitzpatrick is also in the top ten, but that is no guarantee of success.

Fitzpatrick has lost all five of his matches to date, while Viktor Hovland halved two and lost three at Whistling Straits, where only Jon Rahm, Garcia and Tyrrell Hatton won more than a single point.

Rory McIlroy’s last two Ryder Cups have yielded three points from eight matches. Donald will need more from his star names if Europe are to regain the trophy.

MORE : How to watch the Ryder Cup in the UK – and latest odds as Europe bid to win on home soil

MORE : Ryder Cup legend Ian Poulter sends message to team Europe after LIV Golf snub

A worldwide audience, changing weather conditions, extreme spectator pressure, and the challenge of looking good on golf’s biggest stage.

But it’s not just the players who have to adapt to such notions over three frenzied days of action, but more so their wives and girlfriends, who are likely to harbour as much attention from cameramen as the stars themselves. Indeed, the WAGS are now almost as synonymous with the famous event as the mindless shouts from American fans.

Thrust into the celebrity spotlight whether they like it or not, expect few hairs out of place as the action gets underway on Friday morning. But as the weekend draws on, the tension, euphoria, and agony will become more apparent, pending on how their respective partner performs.

And whether they like it or not, social media is unlikely to miss a beat, with every exuberant celebration or on-course stumble certain to soon go viral. Mirror Sport has the lowdown on 12 of the WAGS who will grab much of the limelight, whether they intend to or not…..

Team USA

Nikki Guidish

Fair to say the fiancé of Patrick Cantlay won’t be fazed by being on camera.

The former model and bodybuilding competitor used to appear regularly on US TV’s the Home Shopping Network, earning some extra dollars by advertising footwear. The 31-year-old has since enjoyed quite the career change, working as a pharmacist for Palm Beach Pharmaceuticals in Florida.

Alisson Stokke

By the time she was 17-years-old, Rickie Fowler’s wife was already an internet phenomenon.

The track and field athlete broke ample American high school records for pole vaulting, and later combined work as a fitness model for Nike with her competitive career. A place at the London 2012 Olympics just eluded her though, and post career she married Fowler with the couple welcoming their first child in 2019.

Jenna Sims

To say that the American actress embraces media attention would quite frankly represent a ludicrous understatement.

Married to Brooks Koepka , the former Miss Georgia Teen USA winner has enjoyed a lucrative film career. Her Instagram account, followed by 281,000 people, often leaves little to the imagination either.

Katherine Morikawa

Fair to say when Katherine Morikawa got with now husband Colin, she knew what she was getting herself in for.

They mate at a collegiate golf event in America in 2017, with the 27-year-old having previously been raised in Canada and educated in China. She all goes beyond the realms of simply supporting the former Open champion – caddying for him at Augusta last year.

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She assumably needed to sort childcare before finalising a trip to the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club in Rome though. The pair’s baby son was born just two months ago.

Lacey Homa

When you’re likely to end up plastered over social media anyway, it probably helps to be already hailed as a TikTok sensation.

Max Homa’s wife Lacey can boast 450,000 likes to her account, with the 32-year-old real-estate agent lifting the lid on the life of a golf WAG. Expect more content this weekend, although the posts have slowed up somewhat since son Cam was born in 2022.

Annie Verret

One WAG who has rarely sought celebrity status, but described by Jordan Spieth has his “rock” throughout his career.

The High School sweethearts are married with two children, and the event co-ordinator has offered unwavering support to her man. Like Morikawa, she’s even tried her hand at caddying for him at Augusta – albeit in the par three event and not the main event.

Europe

Kelley Cahill

Whilst golf didn’t incorporate much of Cahill’s life before she met – and later married – Jon Rahm , it’s fair to say sport certainly was.

The Arizona State University graduate excelled in track and field team as a javelin thrower and also tennis. The pair have two children, with the eldest born on the eve of the 2021 Masters, after Rahm had vowed to leave the tournament early if the birth clashed.

Erica Stoll

Fate brought Rory McIlroy and the former PGA employee together, with Stoll helping to get the star to the course on time at the 2012 Ryder Cup in Medinah after he’d miscalculated his tee time.

Five years later they were married and now have a child together. But despite the media fame that accompanies her husband, Stoll herself is one for supporting quietly in the background.

Katherine Gaal

Gaal can be assured that if partner Matt Fitzpatrick’s team don’t prevail in Rome, then the country of her homeland will.

The former Miss New Jersey USA runner-up has forged her own successful career in marketing, but is also regularly seen supporting the 2022 US Open champion at events. And the pair aren’t afraid to be seen in public together, attending Wimbledon this year.

Diane Donald

It’s not just WAGS of the players who will be seen green-side this week, with European captain Luke Donald’s Greece-born wife also set to be there throughout.

The pair met at Northwestern University in Illinois, where the 40-year-old graduated with a degree in psychology. The pair got married in 2007 and have since had three daughters together.

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The best golfers from Europe and the USA are set to do battle in the Ryder Cup later this month, with Europe hoping to end a run of two successive defeats. Team captains Luke Donald and Zach Johnson will both be expecting victory and you can watch every ball live on Sky Sports.

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Kate Rose

If you’ve followed the lengthy career of Justin Rose , you’ll be familiar with wife and devoted supporter, Kate.

He married the former international gymnast in 2006, since having two children with her. And the pair are also in business together having set up the Kate and Justin Rose Foundation to help children in need.

Wendy Honner

Like in 2021, Shane Lowry will no doubt be one of the characters of the Ryder Cup, and wife Wendy Honner will be there to cheer him on.

She balances her career as a nurse with travelling the world to support the Irish star, as well as looking after their two children. They married in New York in 2016, and now own a home in Florida.

After a whirlwind 15 months in the world of golf, the sport can once again focus on the drama on the course rather than off it, as the Ryder Cup makes its return this week.

Team Europe will host their American rivals on home soil at Marco Simone, bidding to win back the title they lost last time out at Whistling Straits. It was a record-breaking victory for the United States, as they brushed aside the Europeans 19-9 in Wisconsin.

Two years on though it is fair to say the professional golfing landscape is in a totally different place to where it was when Steve Stricker and his 12 players lifted the Ryder Cup trophy into the air.

The emergence of LIV Golf last June saw the sport split in two, as the breakaway league found itself in a battle with the PGA Tour at the top of the golfing pyramid. Throughout the ugly civil war, one of the biggest debates was how the dispute would effect this year’s Ryder Cup.

And whilst the matchplay event was often a long way in the distance during the dispute, it was often the topic of conversation with many of those involved connected to either Team Europe or Team USA.

From ineligible players to a brutal captain’s sacking, here is look into how the Ryder Cup found itself caught up in arguably the ugliest period in the history of professional golf.

Ban threats

Ahead of LIV Golf’s inaugural event at Centurion Club in June 2022, a whole host of big name players were linked with, and eventually joined by the breakaway circuit. This came as a shock to many after players were warned of a whole host of repercussions if they were to make the Saudi switch.

One of which was a potential ban from the Ryder Cup, which would have been tough to hear for a select group of defectors. In total eight of the 24 players that competed at Whistling Straits joined the LIV setup, including three of Europe’s greatest players in Sergio Garcia , Ian Poulter and Lee Westwood .

On the back of the switch, Westwood addressed the potential of being banned from the Ryder Cup at the maiden event, commenting: “It’s something I have to take into account [a Ryder Cup ban], I’m not sure about the playing days, I’m 50 next April. Captaincy could be in jeopardy as well, but Ian pretty much covered it all.

“What I will say is that myself and Ian [Poulter] have been members of the PGA Tour while we’ve been on the European Tour and that’s had no effect in the past on whether people have been captains. LIV Golf is another tour so why should it be any different?” Eventually a ‘ban’ so to speak was not enforced, but those competing on the breakaway circuit have felt the effects, more to come on that later.

Henrik Stenson sacked

The man tasked in leading the Europeans to redemption in Rome was Henrik Stenson , but just four months later the Swede was sacked. This came after Stenson opted to join Westwood and co in making the LIV move, one that did not sit well with Team Europe bosses.

Since making the Saudi switch the former Open champion has banked a cool £7.3 million in prize money, but this has not been enough to fully repair the wound of his Ryder Cup sacking, after telling the New York Post in July that he still had a feeling of ‘disappointment’ one year after being relieved of his duties.

Player resignations

Amid the formation of LIV Golf, both the DP World Tour and PGA Tour found themselves in legal disputes with their new-found rival, with playing rights the biggest topic of conversation. For the DP World Tour it was a case of wanting to both fine and suspend their playing members for making the move to the LIV setup.

In their defence a group of group of rebel players had requested ‘conflicted event’ releases in a bid to thwart off any type of punishment. Nine months after the dispute kicked off, Sports Resolutions finally ruled in favour of DP World Tour bosses, which had adverse effects for the European Ryder Cup team.

Having been fined by the Wentworth-based circuit, Europe’s iconic trio of Garcia, Westwood and Poulter all resigned their Tour memberships . Not only did this see them give up the opportunity to play on the DP World Tour, but it also saw them become ineligible to represent their continent in the matchplay event.

Brooks Koepka called up

After months and months of debate as to whether LIV Golf players would compete at Marco Simone, one rebel player was finally given the nod in American Brooks Koepka . Despite his PGA Tour suspension, Koepka catapulted up the U.S. Ryder Cup rankings after a tied-second finish at the Masters and a victory at the PGA Championship in May.

This saw the five-time major winner occupy an automatic spot in the standings until the very final week of qualifying, before being pipped on the final day by Xander Schauffele. Despite falling out of the top six, Koepka became impossible to ignore for captain Zach Johnson, who named him as one of his six skipper picks earlier this month.

Koepka is the only man from the breakaway league across both the American setup and Team Europe to be competing in Rome this week.

Sergio Garcia’s last-ditch effort

The biggest name absent from Luke Donald ‘s European team is that of Garcia, and amid his absence the Spaniard made a last-ditch attempt to make himself available for Ryder Cup selection. Per The Telegraph , Garcia reached out to DP World Tour bosses to regain his eligibility, paying off £700,000 in owed fines to the Wentworth-based circuit.

The Spaniard’s late bid was a failed one though, with the Tour rejecting his offer due to him resigning his membership earlier this year. A DP World Tour spokesperson confirmed Garcia and co will be eligible to reapply for membership next season.

MANY die-hard football fans who wanted tattoos of their favourite team or player inked onto their skin soon came to regret their hasty decisions.

Whether that be a club badge, trophy or even a player’s face, many people have seen their tattoos go horribly wrong.

Below are some of the worst football fan tattoos to ever grace the internet.

Chubby Messi

After Argentina’ won the 2022 FIFA World Cup last year, one fan went to the extreme length of getting Lionel Messi lifting the trophy tattooed across his back.

However, Messi’s face appears to be extremely bloated and he’s been made to look overweight, with one person describing the tattoo as “a combo of Messi and Rooney .”

Arse-nal

It’s not often you’d see this kind of tattoo but one Arsenal fan wanted to show his love for the club by getting their name inked on his backside.

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On one side is “nal” and on the other is “FC”. It doesn’t take long to figure out where the “Arse” part is, as this person’s attempt at humour certainly backfired.

Andy Cole nightmare

One Newcastle fan opted to get a tattoo of former striker Andy Cole on his thigh – two days before he signed for Manchester United .

To add further insult to injury, the picture of him in his underwear was plastered across all of the front pages once news broke of his disaster.

Eeverton

A very common mistake with the majority of tattoo disasters is spelling mistakes and this unfortunate Everton fan was the latest to be added to that list.

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You’d think getting a tattoo of the word “Everton” would be quite simply but not for a certain artist, who put a second “e” in the word and made a complete mess of their work.

The walking tattoo

This man has taken things to an extreme level when it comes to loving your football club and loving tattoos.

This Leeds United and England fan has covered almost every part of his face in ink with flags and colours of the team and country he loves.

Bleeding green and white

A fan of Colombian side Atletico Nacional has dreamed of wearing his club’s famous colours so much that he got them tattooed onto his body.

This crazy football fan acted out his fantasy by getting Atletico’s shirt of green and white stripes permanently inked on his skin, on his back and front.

Man United disaster

Probably one of the worst tattoo’s you’ll ever see. It looks like it was drawn on with marker pen rather than inked on by a professional.

Nonetheless, this person has a huge Man United badge etched onto their back, with Sir Alex Ferguson’s name written beneath. The whole thing looks like it was drawn by a child.

Another Man United disaster

This tattoo of United’s badge is actually much better than the previous one and of a much smaller size too.

However, it is placed between the words “You’ll Never Walk Alone”, the song adopted by Liverpool – one of United’s biggest rivals.

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Tottenham Till I Die

Another case of ink on the head, this die-hard Spurs fan has let everybody know who he supports by getting ” Tottenham Till I Die” on the back of his head.

There are also two huge club badges either side of the writing, meaning you simply cannot miss this man and his tattoo when at a game.