Ryder Cup stars handed pairings two weeks before New York showpiece

Wait 5 sec.

Team Europe’s Ryder Cup stars have been handed their tee times at this weekend’s BMW PGA Championship.The tournament at Wentworth will serve as a send-off and warm-up event for Luke Donald’s players before the 45th staging of the team showpiece.GettyDonald has dropped a hint on his Ryder Cup pairings less than three weeks before the event[/caption]GettyRory McIlroy will be one of 11 members of Team Europe in action at the BMW PGA Championship[/caption]Donald will once again captain the European team following their victory in 2023 as they face Team USA at Bethpage Black.Although his Ryder Cup picks have been paired together this week, they are not playing exclusively alongside their team-mates.It represents a change in approach from 2023, where fans were treated to a string of all-star trios on the tee at Wentworth.Despite that, Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry and Jon Rahm will all play together across the first two rounds in Surrey.FedEx Cup winner Tommy Fleetwood and Justin Rose are grouped with defending champion Billy Horschel.Robert MacIntyre and Tyrrell Hatton will also tee off together, with Australian Ryan Fox completing their three-ball.Elsewhere, Ludvig Aberg and Matt Fitzpatrick are joined by Japan’s Hideki Matsuyama.The final Team Europe pairing sees Viktor Hovland and Rasmus Hojgaard play alongside Marco Penge.However, Sepp Straka will not feature at Wentworth after withdrawing due to a ‘private family matter’ prior to the Tour Championship last month.He is the only member of the 2025 European Ryder Cup team absent from the field.GettyRahm, McIlroy and Lowry have been paired together for the first two rounds at Wentworth[/caption]Donald will be hoping his slight tactical tweak can produce the same results as at Marco Simone last time out.Back in 2023, his side claimed an impressive 16 ½ – 11 ½ win for the hosts in Rome.Another victory later this month would be the first on US soil for a European team since the ‘Miracle at Medinah’ in 2012.As for Keegan Bradley’s Americans, the majority of the team will also be in action this weekend.Several stars are in the field for the PGA Tour’s Procore Championship in Napa, California.Xander Schauffele and Bryson DeChambeau, who is ineligible due to being a LIV Golf player, are the only Team USA players not featuring.BMW PGA Championship selected tee timesTeam Europe players in BOLD8.35am: Justin Rose, Tommy Fleetwood, Billy Horschel8.45am: Hideki Matsuyama, Ludvig Aberg, Matt Fitzpatrick12.25pm: Viktor Hovland, Rasmus Hojgaard, Marco Penge12.35pm: Robert MacIntyre, Tyrrell Hatton, Ryan Fox12.45pm: Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Jon RahmSchauffele opted against appearing after citing a desire to be ‘away from golf’ in the lead up to the Ryder Cup.When is the 2025 Ryder Cup?This year’s Ryder Cup will take place at Bethpage Black in New York from September 26 to 28.It will be the first time the course has hosted the event and only the second time it has been held in the state of New York.Bethpage was previously the venue for the 2019 PGA Championship, which was won by Brooks Koepka.Both Bradley and Donald have finalised their 12-man teams for the event after naming their captain’s picks.The six automatic qualifiers based on the Ryder Cup rankings on each side have been joined by six players chosen by their skippers.