Nicolas Colsaerts is a big hitting, 29-year-old Belgian who is the only rookie on the European team and earned his travel to Chicago thanks to a captain’s pick.
Yes, I said Belgian, meaning Colsaerts is from Belgium.
It’s understandable if you don’t identify Belgium with golf. Colsaerts is Belgium's first Ryder Cup player, and one of the very few who are good enough to make the European Tour.
Add to this that Colsaerts is 6’2”, his great-grandfather was a two-sport Olympian and his father played top-level field hockey, and you already know he was destined to become an athlete; a hockey, volleyball or basketball player.
But a pro golfer, that was a bit of a stretch.
Colsaerts was a promising junior who played on two Junior Ryder Cup teams and turned professional in November 2000 on his 18th birthday. He made survived all three stages of European Q-school becoming the second-youngest player to earn his card.
He had a couple of challenging first two seasons. Then, in 2003 he had his first top-10 finish, a tie for fifth at the Trophee Lancome, and entered the top 100 on the money list for the first time.
He remained as a respectable player for the next three years but then he started to struggle badly and found himself in 2009 at the A-Game International Golf Academy in Brisbane, Australia, as an attempt to salvage his career.
That seems to have helped him. He has come on in leaps and bounds in the last two years climbing all the way to 35th in the Official World Golf Rankings.
He won the China Open last year and the World Match Play this May.
That victory at the World Match Play, which carries a similar format to the Ryder Cup, is probably the main reason why he was a captain’s pick, especially after beating Graeme McDowell in the final.
Add to this the two exceptional rounds at this year’s Open that helped Colsaerts finish in a tie for seventh, his best finish at a major.
Colsaerts has led the EPGA in driving distance since last year, and is actually the longest driver in the Ryder Cup. That is some achievement when you consider the distance that Bubba Watson and Dustin Johnson can smash the ball.
This suits him well for the wide Course 3 at Medinah. With the perfect partner to complement him, he can become a factor on his debut at the Ryder Cup and be an integral part of a possible Europe win.
Now, you know Nicolas Colsaerts and wouldn’t be surprise to watch him excel this weekend.