Europe hold fire on choice for Ryder Cup captain

The announcement of the European Ryder Cup captain for the 2004 matches against the United States will be made no earlier than 22 May next year, when the Ryder Cup board meet during the Volvo PGA Championship at Wentworth.

Ian Woosnam and Bernhard Langer are the favourites to take over for the contest at Oakland Hills Country Club in Michigan in September 2004. But with the qualifying period not starting until next September and the qualifying process still to be decided, there is no rush to name the counterpart to Hal Sutton, the American captain. The most likely option is for five players to be taken from the Order of Merit and five from the world rankings, with two wild cards.

The situation is further complicated by the fact that both Woosnam and Langer may still try to qualify to play themselves. If one of the pair succeeds, it has been suggested the other would be given the captaincy, with the non-qualifier as vice-captain.

Joakim Haeggman, the first Swede to play in the Ryder Cup, broke his ankle playing ice hockey with friends this week and will probably be out until the spring. "I was skating backwards and lost my balance," Haeggman, one of Europe's wild cards in the 1993 win, said. "I had been on the ice for eight seconds. I'll never skate again."