Nicolas Colsaerts: ‘The Ryder Cup is just different – it’s sad not to be involved’

Nicolas Colsaerts was a vice-captain under Luke Donald two years ago (Picture: Getty)

Nicolas Colsaerts’ love for the Ryder Cup runs deep. 

Aged nine, he caught a glimpse of the action on a television set in the clubhouse of a small nine-hole golf club on the outskirts of Brussels, where he started to play the game. He was immediately transfixed.

‘I didn’t even know that much about it, but I was just glued to the TV,’ he recalls. ‘I realised even then that it was just different.’ 

33 years later, Colsearts is now a two-time Ryder Cup winner – as a player in 2012 and as a vice-captain in 2023 – but that passion remains. Despite being in the middle of moving house, he’s still happy to carve out an afternoon to speak over the phone ahead of the latest instalment at Bethpage Black. His profile picture on WhatsApp? The Ryder Cup trophy, of course.

‘Having played a lot of team sports when I was young, it was only second nature to me,’ he tells Metro when asked about his love for the event. ‘I didn’t have to be nurtured into what the Ryder Cup was all about. 

‘But everything gets multiplied when you slowly realise that it is a goal that is achievable, and when it comes down to the realisation that you are going to be part of it, it’s a combination of many different feelings. 

‘It’s very difficult to exactly put into words what it represents to us, but it’s the ultimate achievement as a golfer. Don’t get me wrong, the majors are amazing tournaments to not only play but to play well in them and ultimately to win. But the Ryder Cup just stands aside for so many reasons.’

Colsaerts was a vital cog in Europe’s victory at Marco Simone in 2023 (Picture: Getty)

Those feelings towards the event are perhaps why it stings that he’ll be watching from slightly further afield this time around. A vital part of Luke Donald’s backroom staff when Team Europe romped to victory two years ago, Colsearts is the only vice-captain from Rome not returning to his role this week after Donald opted to replace the Belgian with Alex Noren.

‘Let’s be honest, I’m a little bit sad and disappointed I’m not involved,’ he says of the snubbing. ‘But you have to respect the choice of the captain. His job is to put together what he thinks is the best team for what he needs at certain venues and at certain times.

‘I can’t really say a bad word about Luke, given what I was a part of in 2023, but in the end, yeah, I’m a little bit disappointed that I’m not part of this thing again. It’s basically been what has kept me going and playing the last couple of years to try and be involved again.’

The Belgian is not part of Donald’s backroom staff at Bethpage Black this week (Picture: Getty)

Is a bid to become captain a possibility in the future? ‘I am always going to make myself available because it’s a cause that’s really dear to my heart,’ Colsaerts says. 

‘I do believe that I pick a lot of boxes, whether it’s the knowledge of the competition, the respect I have for it or the relationships that I’ve had with my peers over the last 25 years. I think I’ve always conducted myself in the best of fashion, and I have proven to the knowledgeables that it’s a table I can sit at.’

With no vice-captaincy duties, Colsaerts will instead be lending his insight to Sky Sports from London, but he still flew into Bethpage during the early part of the week to soak in the pre-tournament atmosphere and pay a visit to his former teammates.

Colsaerts has not ruled out a tilt at captaincy in the future (Picture: Getty) Colsaerts won an away Ryder Cup as a player in 2012 (Picture: Getty)

Much has been made of the hostile reception that the European players could be subjected to from the home crowd, but Colsaerts believes the New York fans might not be as bad as many fear and could even play into Europe’s hands.

‘A lot of a lot has been said about how loud it’s going to be, but I think in some way the New York crowd is maybe a little bit different than the ones you find everywhere else in the US,’ he says. 

‘You can see that when you go to sporting events in New York. It’s a crowd that likes entertainment, and I think anywhere else in the US, the people are really behind their Americans. 

‘I feel like New York crowds will also give s*** to their own, so that kind of plays a little bit in our favour. But when the gun goes off on Friday, I can assure you that the only thing on the mind of the European guys will be who they’re playing against and not the 13th man in the crowd.’

A fast start could be crucial to dulling that lively crowd, and with 11 of the 12 players from Rome returning for this year’s edition, Colsaerts is hopeful that Europe have the perfect platform to catch their US counterparts cold in the early exchanges and put themselves on course for their first away victory since 2012.

‘All the guys are going to be extremely comfortable being in the group together,’ he concludes. ‘They’re going to be extremely comfortable spending time together. 

‘It’s almost more like a football team where it’s the same group that plays together season after season. They are able to find each other without even knowing where they are on the pitch, and I think here it’s going to be exactly the same thing. 

‘You’re not going to have to scratch your head with pairings – they already know stuff like that. It’s an extremely familiar situation for everyone, and so you can straight away press on the gas when the gun goes off on Friday morning. That’s what I’m hoping for at least.’

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