Snedeker's Ryder Cup Warning Draws Cool Response From Hatton

U.S. Presidents Cup captain Brandt Snedeker said his team would be "a problem" at next year's Ryder Cup, days after his players rallied from behind to win at Medinah. Asked about the comment Tuesday in St. Andrews, European Ryder Cup player Tyrrell Hatton declined to respond directly.

What did Snedeker say after the Presidents Cup?

The American team's Sunday comeback spared Snedeker from becoming the first losing U.S. Presidents Cup captain in over 25 years. Speaking to Sirius XM PGA Tour Radio afterward, he praised his players' togetherness, then turned his attention to next year's Ryder Cup at Adare Manor in Ireland.

This team's gonna be a problem in Ireland.

The line carries extra weight given the Americans' recent Ryder Cup history. The U.S. is 2-6 in the last eight Ryder Cups and 3-9 in the last twelve, a stretch covering nearly 25 years, including a loss at Bethpage Black last year that was marred by unruly behavior from American fans. U.S. confidence heading into the event typically rests on the Official World Golf Ranking, where American players have generally graded out ahead of their European counterparts top to bottom, a gap that has not translated into results on Ryder Cup week.

How has bulletin-board material backfired for the U.S. before?

European players have a track record of turning confident American quotes into motivation. Before the 2025 Ryder Cup, U.S. captain Keegan Bradley was filmed for Netflix's Full Swing telling prospective players the team would "kick" Europe's collective backside at Bethpage. He later said publicly he worried about the comment reaching European ears once it aired.

After Europe won that Ryder Cup, Shane Lowry posted a photo of himself holding the trophy inside the European team's weight room at Bethpage, with Bradley's quote painted on the wall behind him.

How did Tyrrell Hatton respond at St. Andrews?

Hatton, a three-time Alfred Dunhill Links Championship winner who has gone 3-1 in his last four Ryder Cups, was asked directly about Snedeker's comment in his Tuesday press conference. He called the U.S. team's Sunday performance unbelievably strong, then sidestepped the follow-up question of whether he expected a similar American team at Adare Manor next year, saying only that the U.S. always fields an unbelievably strong side and that next year would be no different.

Several of Europe's Ryder Cup players are competing this week at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship across St. Andrews, Carnoustie and Kingsbarns, their first chance to face questions about Snedeker's comment since it was made. European players stayed out of the Presidents Cup entirely as neutral observers, though Rory McIlroy had publicly backed the International team during the week, a sign the rivalry across the Atlantic was being watched closely even from outside the ropes.