Former Ryder Cup captain Jose Maria Olazabal picked out three European young guns he thought could go on to have a big future in the competition after watching them at the Hero Cup.
Continental Europe are taking on Great Britain & Ireland in Abu Dhabi with Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald watching on closely to get as many pointers as he can for his team to take on America later this year.
Donald knows all about captains Tommy Fleetwood and Francesco Molinari, but there’s a host of younger players on both sides who could impress this week.
And with Donald having six captain’s picks this time around for the Ryder Cup, there’s plenty of places available for those who show flashes of taking to the format.
Especially with the likes of stalwarts Lee Westwood, Ian Poulter and Sergio Garcia out of consideration after joining LIV Golf, there’s set to be a new wave of younger players battling the United States at Marco Simone Golf Club in Rome.
And Ryder Cup legend Olazabal, who formed an incredible partnership with Seve Ballesteros as a player and masterminded the Miracle of Medinah as a captain, says a few players have caught his eye.
The Spaniard had praise for the swings of Sepp Straka, Ewen Ferguson and Nicolai Hojgaard, who was a late replacement in the Hero Cup for his brother Rasmus.
“Sepp Straka, I followed him for a few holes and I liked how steady he is, and I liked his swing also, I think that under pressure that type of swing should hold up really well,” Olazabal told Sky Sports when asked about who had impressed him so far.
“Ewen Ferguson I like, maybe he’s not the longest of hitters but if his putting is good then he could do well, but there’s a bunch of them that have the potential to be top, top players.
“Nicolai I know has been changing his swing a little bit, up to last year he was drawing the ball off the tee but this week from what I saw he’s favouring a little fade, and if he keeps that ball in play off the tee then the rest of his game is extremely sharp.
“He hits it very, very long in that regard, and if he can improve in that area off the tee then I think we’ll have a great player in the future.”
HERO CUP SCORES - DAY ONE
Europe 3-2 GB&I
Tommy Fleetwood & Shane Lowry lost to Thomas Pieters & Alexander Noren 1 down
Tyrrell Hatton & Jordan Smith lost to Thomas Detry & Antoine Rozner 2 down
Callum Shinkwin & Matt Wallace halved with Victor Perez & Guido Migliozzi
Ewen Ferguson & Richard Mansell halved with Francesco Molinari & Nicolai Hojgaard
Seamus Power & Robert MacIntyre bt Sepp Straka & Adrian Meronk 4&3
What was also noticeable at Abu Dhabi Golf Club was the way both sets of players kept to their teams and seemed really up for the battle and determined to win.
None more so than Richard Mansell, who was almost giving it the Ian Poulters with a few fist pumps after making some crucial putts as he played alongside Ferguson to half with Molinari and Hojgaard.
Thomas Pieters, who set a rookie points record when he won four in his Ryder Cup debut in 2016, showed he can really play in his format by helping an off-form Alex Noren take down Fleetwood and Shane Lowry.
Seamus Power and Robert MacIntyre were the partnership of the opening day as they produced a birdie fest to beat Straka and Adrian Meronk 4&3.
