Sergio Garcia withdraws from Irish Open after Ryder Cup snub

Sergio Garcia is devastated after losing out on a Ryder Cup place. File picture: David Davies/PA

Sergio Garcia has pulled out of this weekend's Irish Open, disappointed after not being selected as a captain's pick for Europe's Ryder Cup team.

Captain Luke Donald revealed his six picks on Monday, with Garcia — a 10-time Ryder Cup selection — not among them.

"I felt like I was so looking forward to being a part of that team, and so I felt like mentally, you know, mentally it was kind of tough," Garcia said in an interview with the GolfMagic.

"I didn't want to go there and not be fully engaged in the tournament and stuff, so I just decided to take a little bit of time off and spend it with the family and do a couple of things, you know, some things outside of golf and just kind of reboot a little bit, recharge the batteries."

The Irish Open begins Thursday at The K Club in Kildare.

Ranking points

Garcia, 45, plays in the LIV Golf League, which hampered his ability to earn rankings points toward an automatic qualification. The Spaniard is the all-time leading point scorer in Ryder Cup history.

He has 28.5 points and a 25-13-7 record. The leading American is the late Billy Casper, with 23.5 points and a 20-10-7 record.

Garcia last played for Team Europe in 2021, a loss at Whistling Straits in Wisconsin.

Donald instead selected Ludvig Aberg, Matt Fitzpatrick, Viktor Hovland, Shane Lowry, Jon Rahm and Sepp Straka, all of whom were part of the winning European team at Marco Simone Golf and Country Club near Rome in 2023.

The 45th Ryder Cup will be played September 26-28 at Bethpage Black in Farmingdale, New York.

"The call with Luke was fine but not the call I wanted, obviously, but the conversation was fine," Garcia told GolfMagic about the conversation he had with Donald.

"Now, the only thing I can do is support the team from home. It's as simple as that. I'll be watching and cheering on the European team."