Paul Noel McGinley (born 16 December 1966) is an Irish

professional golfer A professional golfer is somebody who receives payments or financial rewards in the sport of golf that are directly related to their skill or reputation. A person who earns money by teaching or playing golf is traditionally considered a "golf pr ...

who has won four events on the European Tour. At the 2002 Ryder Cup, he famously holed a ten-foot putt on the 18th hole in his match against

Jim Furyk James Michael Furyk (born May 12, 1970) is an American professional golfer who plays on the PGA Tour and the PGA Tour Champions. In 2010, he was the FedEx Cup champion and PGA Tour Player of the Year. He has won one major championship, the 20 ...

The Belfry The Belfry is a golf resort and hotel in Wishaw, Warwickshire, close to Sutton Coldfield, England, located approximately 8 miles from the centre of Birmingham. It was acquired by KSL Capital Partners in August 2012. The resort has three golf ...

which won the Ryder Cup for Europe. He was the winning captain of Europe in the 2014 Ryder Cup and the first Irishman to captain Europe's Ryder Cup side.

Early years

McGinley was raised in Rathfarnham and was educated at St Mary's BNS and Coláiste Éanna. His father Mick — who is from Dunfanaghy — played

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by ki ...

for Donegal, while his mother Julia comes from Rathmullan. McGinley himself was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

and studied at

Dublin Institute of Technology Dublin Institute of Technology (DIT, ga, Institiúid Teicneolaíochta Bhaile Átha Cliath) was a major third-level institution in Dublin, Ireland. On 1 January 2019 DIT was dissolved and its functions were transferred to the Technological U ...

. After his knee injury McGinley turned his full attention to golf. McGinley later said that when he played golf as part of a team it helped to raise his game to another level. He credited his experience of Gaelic football for his passion for team sports and suggested it played a part in why he was appointed European captain for the 2014 Ryder Cup. McGinley won the 1989 Irish Amateur Close Championship and the 1991 South of Ireland Championship at Lahinch Golf Club. He was selected for the 1991 Britain & Ireland Walker Cup team at Portmarnock Golf Club, just north of Dublin, where a strong American team that included

Phil Mickelson Philip Alfred Mickelson (born June 16, 1970), nicknamed Lefty, is an American professional golfer who plays for LIV Golf. He has won 45 events on the PGA Tour, including six major championships: three Masters titles (2004, 2006, 2010), two ...

beat Britain & Ireland 14–10.

Professional career

McGinley turned professional in late 1991 and joined the European Tour in 1992, aged 25. In 1993, he lost a playoff to

Costantino Rocca Costantino Rocca (born 4 December 1956) is an Italian golfer. He was long known as the most successful male golfer that Italy has produced, until the 2018 success of Francesco Molinari, who credited Rocca as an inspiration to him following his Ope ...

in the

French Open The French Open (french: Internationaux de France de tennis), also known as Roland-Garros (), is a major tennis tournament held over two weeks at the Stade Roland Garros in Paris, France, beginning in late May each year. The tournament and ve ...

. In 1994, McGinley lost a playoff to

José María Olazábal José María Olazábal Manterola (, ; born 5 February 1966) is a Spanish professional golfer from the Basque region who has enjoyed success on both the European Tour and the PGA Tour, and has won two major championships, both at The Masters. I ...

in the Open Mediterrania. McGinley eventually won his first title on the European Tour at the 1996 Hohe Brücke Open (formerly known as the Austrian Open). In 1997 he won the World Cup of Golf for Ireland with Pádraig Harrington (who attended the same secondary school, Coláiste Éanna, as McGinley). At the 2001 Celtic Manor Resort Wales Open, McGinley won the tournament on the fifth extra hole of a playoff in an event that was so badly disrupted by torrential rain that it was reduced to just 36 holes. After his victory, McGinley quipped: " Goran Ivanišević said God sent the rain for him at Wimbledon and maybe he sent it for me too!" McGinley's best finish in one of the four major championships is a tie for 6th place in the 2004 PGA Championship. He has featured in the top 20 of the

Official World Golf Ranking The Official World Golf Ranking is a system for rating the performance level of professional golfers. It was started in 1986. The rankings are based on a player's position in individual tournaments (i.e. not pairs or team events) over a "rolli ...

. His best season on the European Tour was in 2005, when he finished third on the Order of Merit. He made the cut in 21 out of 23 events that year and gained his fourth and, to date, last European Tour victory in the season-ending

Volvo Masters The Volvo Masters was the concluding official money event of the European Tour season until 2009, when it was replaced by the Dubai World Championship. The event was founded in 1988 and held at Valderrama Golf Club in Andalusia, Spain, except fo ...

at the Valderrama Golf Club in Spain. McGinley started his final round four shots off the lead. He shot a final round of 67 for the biggest individual tournament win of his career, finishing two strokes ahead of Spain's

Sergio García Sergio García Fernández (; born 9 January 1980) is a Spanish professional golfer. He has played on the European Tour, PGA Tour and LIV Golf Invitational Series. García has won 36 international tournaments as a professional, most notably th ...

. Before his victory in the 2005 Volvo Masters, McGinley had three runner-up finishes in tournaments that year, finishing second to

Ángel Cabrera Ángel Cabrera (; born 12 September 1969) is an Argentine professional golfer who has played on both the European Tour and PGA Tour. He is known affectionately as ''"El Pato"'' in Spanish ''("The Duck")'' for his waddling gait. He is a two-tim ...

in the BMW Championship at Wentworth and losing in the final of the HSBC World Match Play Championship at the same venue to New Zealander

Michael Campbell Michael Shane Campbell (born 23 February 1969) is a New Zealand professional golfer who is best known for having won the 2005 U.S. Open and, at the time, the richest prize in golf, the £1,000,000 HSBC World Match Play Championship, in the ...

(2 & 1). In an absorbing contest, Campbell clinched the title with a half on the penultimate hole after McGinley had driven wildly into the trees on the previous two holes. McGinley later said he was "hurt like you can't imagine" after losing in the final. He said: "I fought as hard as I could and I'm bitterly disappointed." At the 2005 TCL Classic, McGinley shot a final round of 63 to force a sudden-death playoff with Paul Casey. However, on the second extra hole Casey holed a 25-foot birdie putt from the back of the green to win the title. At the 2008 KLM Open played in the Netherlands, McGinley shot a final round of 64 to finish runner-up in the tournament, behind

Darren Clarke Darren Christopher Clarke, (born 14 August 1968) is a professional golfer from Northern Ireland who currently plays on the PGA Tour Champions and has previously played on the European Tour and PGA Tour. He has won 21 tournaments worldwide on ...

Ryder Cup

McGinley made three consecutive Ryder Cup appearances in 2002, 2004 and 2006, with Europe being victorious each time. In the 2002 Ryder Cup, his ten-foot putt on the 18th hole in his match against

secured the ½ point Europe needed for victory; the team eventually won 15½ to 12½. In the

2006 Ryder Cup The 36th Ryder Cup Matches were held 22–24 September 2006 in Ireland at the Palmer Course of the K Club in Straffan, County Kildare, west of Dublin. It was the first time the event was played in Ireland. Europe won by 18 to 9 points, equalli ...

at The K Club in Ireland, McGinley offered a handshake and conceded a 20-foot putt for a half to J. J. Henry on the 18th green of his last day singles match because he feared his opponent might have been put off when a streaker ran across the green. In the 2010 and 2012 matches, McGinley served as one of the European vice-captains to Colin Montgomerie and

respectively. On 15 January 2013, he was named the Europe team captain for the 2014 Ryder Cup. In May 2013, McGinley gave European player

his backing following a public feud that the Spaniard had with

Tiger Woods Eldrick Tont "Tiger" Woods (born December 30, 1975) is an American professional golfer. He is tied for first in PGA Tour wins, ranks second in men's major championships, and holds numerous golf records. * * * Woods is widely regarded as ...

and a controversial "fried chicken" remark that García made about Woods. In an interview with

BBC Radio 5 Live BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that broadcasts mainly news, sport, discussion, interviews and phone-ins. It is the principal BBC radio station covering sport in the United Kingdom, broadcas ...

, McGinley said: "I think there's a personality clash and they don't particularly like each other's company. For me, it's no big deal. He apologised for it and, as far as I'm concerned, we move on. People make mistakes and say things all the time that they regret and didn't mean." In September, Europe went on to win the 2014 Ryder Cup by five points.

Personal life

McGinley is married to wife Alison. She formerly played golf for England and on the

Ladies European Tour The Ladies European Tour is a professional golf tour for women which was founded in 1978. It is based at Buckinghamshire Golf Club near London in England. Like many UK-based sports organisations it is a company limited by guarantee, a legal stru ...

. They have three children and currently reside in

Sunningdale Sunningdale is a large village with a retail area and a civil parish in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead. It takes up the extreme south-east corner of Berkshire, England. It has a railway station on the (London) Waterloo to Readi ...

, England. McGinley is an executive fellow of the Leadership Institute at the

London Business School London Business School (LBS) is a business school and a constituent college of the federal University of London. LBS was founded in 1964 and awards post-graduate degrees (Master's degrees in management and finance, MBA and PhD). Its motto is " ...

. In 2008, McGinley spoke of his relief after his daughter Maia survived a 20–foot fall down a manhole. She was six years old at the time when she slipped on a dislodged manhole cover and plunged down the drain. She was taken to hospital but remarkably had no serious injuries. McGinley said: "We are just so lucky and so grateful she is fine." McGinley enjoys association football and is a fan of Celtic and West Ham United.

Amateur wins

*1988 Irish Youths Championship, Scottish Youths Championship *1989 Irish Amateur Close Championship *1991 South of Ireland Championship

Professional wins (10)

European Tour wins (4)

''*Note: The 2001 Celtic Manor Resort Wales Open was shortened to 36 holes due to rain.'' European Tour playoff record (1–3)

Other wins (6)

Results in major championships

CUT = missed the half-way cut
"T" = tied

Summary

*Most consecutive cuts made – 5 (2004 Open Championship – 2005 PGA) *Longest streak of top-10s – 1 (twice)

Results in The Players Championship

CUT = missed the halfway cut

Results in World Golf Championships

¹Cancelled due to

9/11 The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...

QF, R16, R32, R64 = Round in which player lost in match play
"T" = Tied
NT = No tournament

Team appearances

Amateur * Walker Cup (representing Great Britain & Ireland):

1991 File:1991 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Boris Yeltsin, elected as Russia's first president, waves the new flag of Russia after the 1991 Soviet coup d'état attempt, orchestrated by Soviet hardliners; Mount Pinatubo erupts in the Ph ...

European Amateur Team Championship The European Amateur Team Championship is a European amateur team golf championship for men organised by the European Golf Association which was introduced in 1959. The championship was played in odd-numbered years from 1959 to 2007 and has been ...

(representing Ireland):

Professional * Alfred Dunhill Cup (representing Ireland):

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

1994 File:1994 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 1994 Winter Olympics are held in Lillehammer, Norway; The Kaiser Permanente building after the 1994 Northridge earthquake; A model of the MS Estonia, which sank in the Baltic Sea; Nelson ...

1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 800, causing the plane to crash and killing everyone on b ...

, 1997,

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The ''Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently s ...

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shoot ...

2000 File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen fro ...

* World Cup (representing Ireland):

, 1997 (winners),

2001 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a multi-national coalition in an invasion of Afghanist ...

, 2002, 2003, 2004,

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered ...

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Ryder Cup The Ryder Cup is a biennial men's golf competition between teams from Europe and the United States. The competition is contested every two years with the venue alternating between courses in the United States and Europe. The Ryder Cup is named a ...

(representing Europe): 2002 (winners), 2004 (winners),

(winners),

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wa ...

(non-playing captain, winners) **Record: 9 matches, 4.5 points (50% Point Percentage) **All formats (W–L–H): 2–2–5 = 4.5pts ***Singles: 1–0–2 = 2pts ***Foursomes: 1–2–1 = 1.5pts ***Fourballs: 0–0–2 = 1pt *

Seve Trophy The Seve Trophy was a biennial golf tournament between teams of professional male golfers; one team representing Great Britain and Ireland, the other team representing Continental Europe. The tournament was played in years when there is no Ryder ...

(representing Great Britain & Ireland): 2002 (winners),

(winners), 2009 (winners, non-playing captain),

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who Assassination of Muammar Gaddafi, was killed tha ...

(winners, non-playing captain) * Royal Trophy (representing Europe):