Henrik Stenson had time to make a joke about the stripping of his Ryder Cup captaincy after securing victory on his LIV Golf debut. Stenson rocked the golfing world earlier this month after giving up his role as European skipper to join the Saudi-backed series.
Following the uproar, the Swede has seemingly made his move financially worthwhile, after the former captain followed up collecting a cool £40 million signing on fee by clinching £3.3 million in prize money at Trump National on Sunday. Stenson followed up an opening round seven-under-par 64, with two, two-under 69’s to clinch his debut win.
Afterwards the 2016 Open champion took the opportunity to take a jibe at his Ryder Cup sacking, by joking: "I guess we can agree I played like a captain.
"It’s been a good first week obviously. Nice to be here with the guys getting a feel for it. It’s been a busy 10 days and I’m extremely proud I managed to finish as well as I did. Got a little wobbly at the end but that (par) putt on 17 was massive."
Stenson was initially appointed captain in March of this year, but after making the controversial month the Swedish star was stripped of his role. Speaking after his victory in Bedminster, the former Open champion revealed his recent rollercoaster acted as added ‘extra motivation’ on debut.
"Yeah, it has been a bit of a roller coaster, no question. I think there might have been a little bit of extra motivation in there this week," Stenson went on. "When we as players have that, I think we can bring out the good stuff. Yeah, I certainly did that this week.
"I guess that’s been a bit of a theme over the course of my career, I think, when I really want something I manage to dig a little bit deeper, and a lot of times we manage to make it happen."
What did you make of Stenson's cheeky jibe? Let us know in the comments section.
Just a day after the Swede’s win his successor as captain was named, with Englishman Luke Donald the man coming in to lead the European’s to Rome.
Upon his appointment, Donald said: "Some of my best experiences in golf have been in the Ryder Cup and I would not swap those for anything. It is an event like no other and I cannot wait to create more special memories in Italy next year.
"I love everything the Ryder Cup embodies, from the camaraderie and companionship of being part of a team, to the history of the contest.
"But most of all playing for something bigger than yourself. Rome will be a fantastic host city, and I have always enjoyed spending time there. It is a city rich in history and hopefully we can create some of our own in 14 months’ time."
