All Blacks inspire Europe’s 'very powerful' number move

Members of Team Europe during the second preview day of the 43rd Ryder Cup at Whistling Straits, Wisconsin. Picture: Anthony Behar/PA 

With the backing of golf’s most creative marketing team at the European Tour behind him, captain Pádraig Harrington launched a new motivational tool for his 12-man team: Roster numbers.

Only 164 players have represented teams from Britain, Ireland, and continental Europe in 43 Ryder Cup matches — a fraternity so elite that players are now distinguished by their place in the lineage.

Lee Westwood holds No.118 while rookies Viktor Hovland, Shane Lowry, and Bernd Wiesberger take spots 162-164 in the historical record that goes back to 1-9 in 1927, starting alphabetically with Aubrey Boomer.

With an emotional video showed in the European team room after their arrival on Monday night, the concept of being special was laid out to inspire the current 12 players to “Make. It. Count”. Their numbers will be displayed on their team kits and golf bags.

“164 is just a startlingly small amount of players,” said Harrington, who at No.121 has a higher number than two of his captain’s picks, Westwood and Sergio Garcia (120).

“Obviously you can blame Lee Westwood for that for playing 11 times, and Sergio, as well, but it’s a small group of people.

“When you think 570 people have gone to space and 5,780 people have climbed Mount Everest, it’s incredible that there’s so few who have played in the Ryder Cup. It makes it very special for the players to know that they have a place in history that can never be taken away from them. They will always have a name on that wall.”

The video, which Harrington released on his Twitter feed, features numerous living past players going back to No.55, Brian Huggett of Wales. Past captains Darren Clarke is No.115 and Paul McGinley No.138, while Harrington’s vice-captain, Graeme McDowell, sports No.138.

Garcia said: “It was very powerful. I didn’t know my number.

I’ve always known that being a part of the Ryder Cup team is very difficult, but I didn’t know that only that little amount of players have made it. So that showed you how difficult it really is.”

Harrington said the European Tour marketing folks got the idea from others, like New Zealand’s All Blacks rugby squad, that have used similar motivational tactics.

“I was very comfortable and happy to buy into it and believe in it, and it’s really worked out very nicely,” he said of the video and the team numbers.