Stenson the right man to lead Europe

Sweden’s Henrik Stenson has been appointed as captain of Europe for the 2023 Ryder Cup to be held in Rome.

The 2016 British Open winner served as a vice-captain in last year’s competition in Wisconsin, scored the winning point in the 2006 contest in Ireland and seems to fit seamlessly into the role of captain.

I believe that Stenson’s wonderful dry sense of humour and his quick-witted character will bring a much-needed jolt of levity to the matches, as the Ryder Cup has a known tendency of taking itself too seriously.

His ability to see the funny side of life was underlined at the 2021 Hero World Challenge when he and Jordan Spieth played from the wrong tee box and were penalised two strokes.

His reaction, with Spieth laughing next to him, was priceless when he said: “It was only two shots each, so it wasn’t a big deal.”

Apparently, he asked tournament organisers…