“He certainly wishes the team all the best” - Sergio Garcia's distant support for Ryder Cup earns praise from Luke Donald

It's likely that one of the most difficult decisions facing European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald was whether or not to call up Sergio Garcia. The Spaniard's experience would have been welcome in any team, regardless of his current form or the circuit on which he plays.

Luke Donald will be without Sergio Garcia at the Marco Simone Golf and Country Club. It will be the first edition of the Ryder Cup without Garcia in 24 years. Even so, the Spaniard does not stop supporting Team Europe.

The European Ryder Cup captain himself praised the attitude of Sergio Garcia, who conveyed his good wishes for the event. He "wishes the team all the best," Donald told ESPN:

"We've chatted a little bit and he certainly wishes the team all the best. It's different for me (too). It will be the first Ryder Cup I've been involved without Sergio. But he understands the role and he was more than supportive when I talked to him just a few weeks ago."

Luke Donald made these statements on Monday from the course that will host the tournament from Sept. 30. He completed a training session there with his entire team before they all participate in the BMW PGA Championship starting on Thursday.

Sergio Garcia's Ryder Cup history

The Spaniard participated in 11 editions of the Ryder Cup, 10 as a player (1999, 2002, '04, '06, '08, '12, '14, '16, '18, '21) and one as vice-captain (2010). Sergio Garcia won seven, including the 2010 edition.

Currently, he holds the absolute record for the most points scored in a Ryder Cup career, with 28.5. Of those, 13.5 points were in foursomes (also a record), 10.5 in fourball (also a record, tied with two other players) and 4.5 in singles.

A fourth record for Garcia is to have been the youngest player in history to play in the event (19 years and 258 days in the 1999 edition). This record will stand at least until the 2025 edition.

Sergio Garcia averages 2.85 points per edition of the event. His best performance was in 2004, when he obtained 4.5 points out of a 5, thanks to four victories and one draw.

In that edition, Garcia opened competing in Fourball against the pairing of David Toms and Jim Furyk. His teammate was Lee Westwood. That same first day, Garcia teamed up with Luke Donald to defeat James Perry and Stewart Cink in Foursomes.

On the second day, Garcia played two more matches. Early on, he teamed up again with Westwood for a Fourball tie with Jay Haas and Christian DiMarco. Then, he was paired again with Donald to defeat Jim Furyk and Frederick Funk in Foursomes.

On the third and decisive day, Garcia faced Phil Mickelson in singles and defeated him 3&2. Europe won an overwhelming victory in that edition, 18.5 to 9.5.