European Ryder Cup captain Luke Donald has admitted his preparations have been left "in limbo" with Rory McIlroy calling for LIV Golf stars not to be selected.
Preparations for the host team were thrown into chaos in the summer when Henrik Stenson, the initial captain, was stripped of the role over his defection to the Saudi-backed tour. The Swede has since argued he'd come to agreement with LIV that would have enabled him to still fulfil the role.
In further blows to Team Europe, tournament icons Sergio Garcia, Ian Poulter, and Lee Westwood have already jumped ship. Two other members of the team beaten in Wisconsin last year, Paul Casey and Bernd Wiesberger, as well as former vice-captains Martin Kaymer and Graeme McDowell, have also signed.
The DP World Tour is yet to confirm whether LIV members will be eligible for selection, although unlike the PGA, they've not banned rebel players from their events. Indeed, 17 from the Saudi-backed tour entered last week's BMW PGA Championship at Wentworth.
To Donald's relief, Shane Lowry claimed a one-shot victory over McIlroy and Jon Rahm. But it was during the tournament where his key man made a blunt statement about many of his long-time teammates, saying: "I don't think any of those guys should be on the Ryder Cup team."
Further ambiguity has arisen from the current legal action a number of LIV players, Poulter included, and Donald himself admitted he's still in the dark over how selection will work: "Nothings that really changed since I was appointed back in August," he said, via Sky Sports.
"We're still a little bit in limbo. We don't know what's going to happen with the lawsuit so I'm trying to not really put too much energy. Once we get a clearer picture, I can give you better answers."
Donald, 44, was speaking on the eve of the DS Automobiles Italian Open, which takes place on the Ryder Cup course. Edoardo Molinari is one of Donald's vice-captains for the biennial contest, with both using the event as part of their build-up to next September.
Europe's task could be considered a seismic one given their record 19-9 defeat at Whistling Straits 12 months ago. However, the strength of the Team USA side remains to be seen - with the likes of Dustin Johnson, Brooks Koepka, Bryson DeChambeau and Patrick Reed now playing on the rebel tour.
