Adrian Meronk Details Emotions After Ryder Cup Snub: 'From Shock to Sadness to Anger'
STRAFFAN, Ireland — Shock, sadness, anger. That’s how Adrian Meronk explained his emotions upon learning he was not going to be part of the 12-man European Ryder Cup team in Rome later this month.
It was on a train ride leaving Switzerland that the winner of the Italian Open in May at Marco Simone learned he was not playing.
A call from European captain Luke Donald was expected, but the content was not.
Adrian Meronk was arguably the biggest snub among Luke Donald's European Ryder Cup captain's picks.
Danielle Parhizkaran/USA TODAY Network
“It's been emotional time for me, to be honest, from shock to sadness to anger, and now I'm trying to turn it into motivation going into this week,” Meronk said Wednesday at the Irish Open. “Obviously it's a hard one to swallow. I thought I've done enough to be on the team, but it is what it is. I wish them good luck and I will just focus on my game and move forward.”
Meronk said he was in a good mood prior to the phone call on the train after a T13 last weekend at the Omega European Masters in Switzerland.
On the train with his girlfriend, musician Melania Bobrowicz, the 30-year-old native of Poland was stunned when the news filtered through the line that he was receiving an obligatory call of condolence and not a call to welcome him on the team.
“I was in shock, because I was expecting (something different), I had a pretty decent chance to be on the team, but it was a quite shocking call,” Meronk said.
In fact, Meronk said he doesn’t remember much of the conversation. He remembers hearing it was tough on Donald and then after learning he was not going, he stopped listening.
“He was saying that someone had to stay home. It was close obviously and stuff like that,” Meronk said. “Obviously I wouldn't want to be in his position. I knew it was tough for him.“
Meronk's anger stemmed from the fact that he had spent the last year and a half thinking about making the team and his goal had been shattered with one phone call.
“Suddenly, I was just realizing that it's not going to happen this year,” Meronk said. “So, it was just sadness turning into anger. I think it's the normal process of emotions.”
A lot of players on tour, coaches, caddies and staff have been very supportive to Meronk via texts and calls.
“Obviously, you don't know Polish, but you can read some comments on social media,” Meronk said of the reaction at home. “Obviously everyone was disappointed. I know a couple of people already bought tickets because they were sure I'm going to be there. They probably are going to go regardless, but yeah, they were not happy.”
Meronk now has a title to defend this week at the Irish Open, and it will be a unique experience.
“I'm kind of fighting with emotions inside of me, kind of want to focus on this week, it's a great venue, great tournament,” Meronk said. “It's still somewhere in the back of my mind what happened a couple days ago, but I hope I'll be ready tomorrow on the first tee, and I'll just give my best as I always do.”
For Meronk, the next potential Ryder Cup on his calendar is at Bethpage, N.Y., in 2025, and this experience may make a difference.
“Probably just focus more on getting that spot through qualification, not lean on the pick,” Meronk said of what he could do differently. “I think next time, I'll be more focused, maybe play more counting events if I need to get more points than just to qualify on my own and just not to wait for the pick. I think that is the only thing that I can think of.”