Luke Donald with ballsiest moment in Ryder Cup history?
European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald delivered an impassioned speech during the opening ceremony on Wednesday where he reminded the US team they don't play for money.
European Ryder Cup fans may believe Luke Donald's team are already one up after the Englishman took not one but two clear digs at the United States team during his speech at the opening ceremony.
On Friday, all eyes of the sporting world will turn to Bethpage Black for the 45th edition of the Ryder Cup.
Europe are attempting to become the first team to win an away Ryder Cup since Jose Maria Olazabel's men completed a miracle comeback at Medinah in 2012.
The blue and gold will be led by Donald for the second successive Cup, while Keegan Bradley will lead the red, white and blue.
There has been plenty of talk this week about the subject of money. For the first time in the event's 98-year history, the US players will be paid to participate.
The top-ranked Scottie Scheffler is among several players who say they plan to give away every penny of their $200,000 "stipend".
Patrick Cantlay, Xander Schauffele and the aforementioned Bradley have also pledged to do the same but not every US player has spoken on the subject.
Bradley defended the payments by declaring "we wanted to bring the Ryder Cup into today's age and we felt like this was the best way to do it".
Donald told reporters at the beginning of the week that the Ryder Cup is "not a week to be paid" and rejected the idea of it when he brought it up last December.
Team Europe's captain had heard the PGA of America were planning on paying the players and he wanted the input from his own team.
Masters champion Rory McIlroy later said he would "pay for the privilege" of competing at the Ryder Cup.
Donald reminded Bradley and his team of this during Wednesday's opening ceremony.
"It is not about prize money or world ranking points," Donald said. "It's about pride. It's about representing your flag, your shirts, and the legacy you leave behind.
He later added: "We play for our families, our teammates, our countries, our continent, and for the generations before us who made this event what it is today.
"The American team is rightly proud of their heritage, but so are we. Our European legacy is rooted in resilience, in togetherness and in proving people wrong.
"Time and again, we've shown that when we come together as one with a shared purpose, we can achieve remarkable things.
"We're fuelled by something money cannot buy."#TeamEurope | #OurTimeOurPlace pic.twitter.com/kFGyoEwpet
— Ryder Cup Europe (@RyderCupEurope) September 24, 2025
"We are fuelled by something money cannot buy: Purpose, brotherhood, and a responsibility to honour those who came before us, while inspiring those whose time is yet to come."
Bradley also spoke to the crowd for more than 15 minutes.
Although the beginning of his speech did not go as planned.
The 39-year-old said he "fell in love" with the Ryder Cup when he watched Justin Rose sink the winning putt at Brookline in 1999.
Bradley, of course, meant to say Justin Leonard. Several members of the European team were caught laughing at the mistake, though Rose remained steely-faced.
The pairings for Friday's opening Ryder Cup matches will be announced at 21:00 BST on Thursday.
When the Ryder Cup begins, you can follow daily live text commentary on the GolfMagic website.
We'll also be bringing you all the latest news, opinion and analysis.
Ben Smith joined the GolfMagic team in September 2021, initially as a content executive.
These days, he assumes the position of content manager.
