The Ryder Cup is not the only event where the atmosphere at Team Europe is high

CLEARWATER, Fla. – You’d be forgiven for thinking that Tiger Woods’ highly anticipated news conference at the Hero World Challenge in the Bahamas was the most compelling golf event on this Tuesday in December. It wasn’t. The most entertaining action took place in a carpeted conference room at Feather Sound Country Club, here on the west coast of Florida, where eight of European golf’s leading players of the past thirty-plus years presided over a podium and joyfully held the court ahead of the Skechers World Champions Cup.

The World Champions Cup is a relative newcomer to the professional golf calendar, a three-day competition for over-50s (US, Europe and the rest of the world) that is essentially a mix of the Ryder and President Cups, albeit with a different format (sixballs and scotch sixsomes!) and a more complicated scoring system. In 2023, the Americans won the opening game in nail-biting fashion with 221 points, while last year’s event was canceled due to bad weather. Which brings us to the 2025 edition, where Europe has – no surprise – taken an impressive lead in the all-important Team Vibes category.

Here was Darren Clarke, the Europe captain, cackling as he entered his team’s Tuesday morning session with reporters; there was one of Clarke’s five playing teammates, the pony-tailed Spaniard Miguel Ángel Jiménez, who wore the European flag like a cape; and look, is that 55 year old Alex Cejka with his hat turned backwards?! As Colin Montgomerie, who is 62, climbed onto the stage, his teammates groaned jokingly, then celebrated as Monty successfully reached the top. This wasn’t a winners’ press conference, but it felt like one.

Completing Clarke’s team are Thomas Bjorn and Bernhard Langer, along with vice-captains Soren Kjeldsen and Jesper Parnevik, who took the opportunity of his opening speech to reveal: “I’ve made all the mistakes I can make this week. I got lost driving here. I couldn’t find the first tee in Sunday’s match with Darren. I couldn’t find the tenth tee yesterday. And I’ve just figured out how to work the shower into the hotel.”

Parnevik wasn’t the only player perplexed by the pipes. When it was Montgomerie’s turn for an opening statement, he said, “I’d like to start by asking Jesper how the shower actually works? I haven’t quite figured it out yet, and I’ve been here for three days, Jesus.”

And so it went. Cracks, jokes, barbs, laughter.

When Clarke incorrectly said his team would be ready to play when the matches start on Friday, Parnevik quickly corrected his captain, saying: “I think we’ll start on Thursday.”

“Yes, Thursday,” Clarke said, laughing. “Yes, if it’s Thursday, we’re here to try to win this week, make no mistake. We probably want to do ourselves a little bit better than last time and get ourselves right in the mix.”

Clarke wasn’t just paying lip service. The boys aren’t just here for giggles this week. Last time – at The Concession Golf Club, an hour’s drive south of here – the event came down to a Sunday clash between the US and international sides. The Internationals controlled their own destiny, but both Vijay Singh and Retief Goosen threw their approach shots into a penalty box on the final hole, effectively handing the title to the US. “We were in shock.”

While the Americans celebrated, the skippers of the other teams, Clarke and Ernie Els, were cooking.

“Darren was angry, and Ernie was angry. So I’m angry,” Jacobsen said. ‘Because it means so much. There is no age limit on competitive desire. Whether you are 7 or 57, it doesn’t matter.”

This week the American captain is Jim Furyk; his team consists of Stewart Cink, Jerry Kelly, Justin Leonard, Steve Stricker and Jason Caron, and vice-captains Steve Flesch and Billy Andrade. International captain Mike Weir plays alongside Angel Cabrera, KJ Choi, Steve Alker, YE Yang and Mark Hensby; Weir’s assistants are Charlie Wi and Ricardo Gonzalez.

The Americans didn’t let the Europeans have all the fun. On Monday evening, it sounded as if the American team members stayed awake past their bedtime. “Probably too many drinks to start the week off right,” Stricker said. “That’s how we ended two years ago, and we had a ball.”

Justin Leonard added: “I need some electrolytes, please.”

Whatever your thoughts on the “Silly Season” events between Thanksgiving and Christmas, it’s hard not to appreciate the collection of global talent that took the stage here Tuesday morning. For golf fans of a certain era, Feather Sound this week feels a bit like one of those baseball fantasy camps that populate this part of Florida. But instead of World Series winners, you get great champions. Wander the property and you might spot YE Yang, who famously upset Tiger Woods at the 2009 PGA Championship; or a Masters champion like Mike Weir or Angel Cabrera; or a timeless wonder like 68-year-old Bernhard Langer.

On Tuesday afternoon, Montgomerie had just completed a nine-hole practice round when Langer’s approach to the 9th green nearly knocked Monty on his head.

You couldn’t have blamed Montgomerie for being salty, but instead he quickly laughed it off. There are a lot of those on this team.

“You would also get that in a Ryder Cup setting,” Montgomerie told me on Greenside. “We make fun of each other, we pull the mickey, we make fun of each other. We leave our egos behind and we all fight for each other.”