Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds: Will Luke Donald Go For Hat-Trick At Adare Manor?

Luke Donald established himself as one of the great Ryder Cup captains by engineering Europe’s remarkable victory over the United States at Bethpage Black and he is the favourite on golf betting sites to lead the team for a third time in Ireland.

Following his success in Rome two years ago, Donald became only the fourth captain in history to win back-to-back Ryder Cups with victory in New York where the crowd was toxic.

Victory seemed a formality when Europe took an 11½-4½ lead into Sunday’s singles which became 12-5 before a ball had been struck because of an injury to Viktor Hovland.

The Europeans only needed two points to retain the Ryder Cup, but won just one of their 11 matches courtesy of Ludvig Aberg’s 2&1 victory over Patrick Cantlay.

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Just when an impossible comeback seemed within reach for the USA, Shane Lowry made a clutch putt for a half against Russell Henley which was later followed by Tyrrell Hatton winning the Ryder Cup outright in a tied match with Collin Morikawa.

In the end, Europe prevailed 15-13 to become the first team to win on away soil since Donald was a member of the team that came back from 10-4 down to win in the Miracle at Medinah in 2012.

With speculation rife about who will lead the hosts in 2027, Gambling.com takes a look at potential candidates and the latest Europe Ryder Cup captain odds. 

Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds: Luke Donald 

Donald was described as the “greatest European captain of all time” by his American counterpart Keegan Bradley in the aftermath of their 15-13 victory, a sentiment which was echoed by many of the players from the visiting team.

Jon Rahm called for Europe’s leader to be given “two more years”, although when asked about the possibility of joining Bernard Gallacher as a captain in three successive editions, Donald would only say “we’ll see”.

Those words suggest the former world number one is not ruling out the chance of leading the team at Adare Manor and he would certainly have the backing of all 12 players that brought the trophy home.

An announcement from the committee which decides the next captain is not expected to be made until 2026, but if Donald wants the job there are likely to be no objections from any of the parties.

Donald’s meticulous preparation for the three days on Long Island was much praised by the players and it is no surprise to see him priced as 4/5 favourite on betting sites. 

Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds: Justin Rose

Should Donald decide against going to war with the Americans again, then Justin Rose has been touted as a potential successor.

Rose won both of his fourballs matches playing alongside Tommy Fleetwood and was heading for half a point in Sunday’s singles until rookie Cameron Young holed a birdie on the 18th.

The 2013 US Open champion has won five of the seven Ryder Cups he has played in, but he will be 47 by the time the competition heads to County Limerick, just three years away from being able to play on the Seniors Tour.

For now, Rose is playing brilliantly, and his competitive edge shows no sign of waning judging by his tetchy encounter with Bryson DeChambeau on day two.

Rose would probably like to play for Europe as long as possible and delay the captaincy for the future, but he is 15/8 to replace Donald.

Next Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds:

Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds: Francesco Molinari

If the Ryder Cup committee is looking for a player with the winning touch, then it could do a lot worse than consider Francesco Molinari.

The Italian was a member of all three winning teams in 2008, 2012 and, most famously, 2018 when he scored five points at Le Golf National.

Four of those came with playing partner Tommy Fleetwood, beating Tiger Woods three times on Friday and Saturday.

The 2018 Open champion was vice-captain in Rome and New York which means he has never lost a Ryder Cup.

Molinari is 3/1 to be Europe’s next Ryder Cup captain.

Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds: Bjorn And Olazabal Winning Machines

Thomas Bjorn, like Molinari, has a perfect Ryder Cup record both as a player and captain.

The Dane was part of the winning teams at Valderrama (1997), The Belfry (2002) and Gleneagles (2014), before leading Europe to success as captain in the 2018 edition in Paris.

Bjorn was vice-captain for the sixth time at Bethpage and is 4/1 to lead the European charge in Ireland.

Jose Maria Olazabal ended his Ryder Cup playing career with an impeccable 3-0-0 record at the K Club in 2006 when Europe ripped the visiting Americans to shreds.

He had a 75% record in both foursomes (7-2-1) and fourballs (9-2-3) throughout his seven appearances, but perhaps his most thrilling Ryder Cup memory came as captain at Medinah in 2012 when Europe miraculously overhauled a 10-4 deficit to win on American soil.

Olazabal was one of the vice-captains in Rome and New York, and if selected would bring a wealth of experience and the magic touch to the European team.

The Spaniard is available at 5/1 to lead Europe once again.

Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds: Ian Poulter

For many, Ian Poulter is the soul of the European Ryder Cup team, but he seemingly burnt his bridges by joining the LIV Golf Tour.

As a player, his performances were simply sensational, especially at Valhalla (2008), Celtic Manor (2010) and Medinah (2012) where he took a combined 11 points from 13 matches.

His most remarkable display came at Medinah where he made five consecutive birdies alongside playing partner Rory McIlroy to set the scene for Europe’s remarkable comeback in the singles.

LIV golfers Tyrrell Hatton and Jon Rahm both played in the 2025 Ryder Cup, so the door has been slightly widened for Poulter to lead Europe, something he would “love” to do one day.

For now, Poulter is 6/1 to be appointed Europe captain.

Europe Ryder Cup Captain Odds: Irish Captain A Possibility

With the 2027 Ryder Cup taking place at Adare Manor, could an Irishman get the job of leading the team?

Darren Clarke’s appearance at the K Club in 2006 will go down as one of the most emotional performances the Ryder Cup has ever seen.

Just six weeks after the death of his wife Heather and with her blessing, Clarke played a major part in Europe’s 18½-9½ victory to retain the trophy.

Clarke, 8/1 to be handed the captaincy, has been vice-captain on three occasions and was part of Olazabal’s team at Medinah.

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Could Paul McGinley be tempted away from his day job as a golf pundit with the Sky Sports team to lead Europe to victory as he did at Gleneagles in 2014?

McGinley holed the winning putt at The Belfry in 2002 and was in the victorious teams at both Oakland Hills and the K Club.

Vice-captain at Celtic Manor and Medinah, McGinley followed those successes by leading the team to an emphatic victory in Scotland to maintain his record of winning every Ryder Cup.

Padraig Harrington won the Ryder Cup four times in six appearances between 1999 and 2010, but his performance as captain at Whistling Straits in 2021 was heavily criticised during a record-breaking defeat.

However, Harrington is passionate about the Ryder Cup and would have the backing of a vocal home crowd. 

McGinley is 7/1 and Harrington 10/1 to be appointed Europe’s leader in their home country.

* Reminder: These are hypothetical odds provided by industry experts.

Will Luke Donald accept the challenge for a third time or will he hand over the reins to someone else? Post your comments below!